Miraculous! Tales of Swan Blanc & Cat Noir
by Cinderella Girl626
Summary: Once an aspiring dancer on stage, now a broken teen. Trying to find a reason to feel wanted in her new home of Paris, Samantha Fujisaki-Tanets is given the opportunity to not only walk on her own two legs again, but make a difference. Wings unfrilled as Swan Blanc, Samantha will do everything she can to help her new home. Plus, balance school. And maybe a crush too? -OCxAdrien-
1. A Story of Beginnings

Hi, everyone! Welcome to the first chapter of Miraculous: Tales of Swan Blanc & Cat Noir.

Thanks for checking this out. I hope it lives up to good expectations and that it piques your interest enough to get a review or want more. I've been a fan of the Miraculous series for a while now and wanted to make my own story. Or at least I hope to if people like it enough.

But anyways, enough about me! Let's get on with our hero's origin story!

Or at least the start of some kind of story…

Anyways, please review if you get the time! Reviews help the writing process and tell us writers directly what you like, don't like, or what you'd like to see more of. Just no flaming for the sake of complaining though, please. ;3

A/N: This chapter here is technically a slight re-edit of the first chapter. Most of some of the changes can be found in the second half of the chapter, so don't fear missing out on something crucial.

Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug nor Pokemon.

* * *

"Isn't her dancing just divine?"

"Exquisite. To be so far along at her young age."

"To have so much energy to keep going as far as the adults. She must practice everyday."

The subject of the audiences' comments felt a burning gasp escape her lips, ears catching gossip quietly mixed in with the classical music ringing through the breath taking opera house. The ballet dancers' chest felt heavy, a crushing weight squeezing at her insides every time she tried to take in oxygen. It felt like her whole upper body was on fire each time she tried to move a single limb.

Yet nobody could tell what kind of pain she was in from their seats in the audience.

They couldn't.

They wouldn't.

Her job was to be flawless, to look beautiful and graceful at the center stage while conveying a story through her movements. If the mask of peace she had when she just started fell now, there was no point in even trying to continue. If she couldn't handle this, what was the point?

Taking a step forward she pushed herself off the ground, legs spreading outwards through the air as if she was taking off to fly. The pain in her chest momentarily disappeared, a feeling of warm calm spreading through the ballet dancers' body; and as she descended back down she routinely placed her feet on top the stage to catch herself, legs bent to secure her descent and cream and white colored tutu flowing with movement.

The sounds of hands clapping from the sea of onlookers seated in the darkness, the dancer placed her right foot forward and carefully leaned forward to brace herself on the single limb. Slowly raising her left leg upwards and outstretching her arms outwards to balance her form, a red-jeweled necklace hanging around her neck dangled in the light, sparkling with a ruby shine that contrasted in color, yet complimented her angelic outfit.

It was perfect. Her appearance, her outfit, her movements and grace. Her entire being was marveled by the audience and while she was feeling tired, she also felt so strong and free. She was so happy to be focused on what she loved. She felt so powerful every time she stepped on stage.

Like she could do anything. Even fly off this very-

"Aaah!"

Suddenly, a pain stronger than anything the dancer felt broke her form. The shock coming from her foot, the dancer was unable to hold herself up any longer and crashed hard to the floor in pain; a cry of discomfort making its way out of her as she fell.

The crumpled form of the ballet dancer writhing in agony, she reached for her ankle, grasping at it tightly as if hoping her own touch would somehow stop the throbbing.

It was…unbearable. Her foot felt like it was on fire inside and out, like something was stretching her muscles like string until they snapped.

"H-Help." The dancer whispered, her voice gasping out. It was so quiet she wasn't sure if anyone could hear her, but she still tried her best. "P-Please."

She waited. Curled into a ball holding her right leg in pain, the dancer continued to wait. Help would surely come. She was hurt and could not continue on. She may not have been dancing now, but even when still and unmoving, she was still just as graceful and beautiful as she had been moments ago.

Wasn't she? She believed that…so why was nobody there for her?

"I can't believe this."

Yes! Finally someone was speaking out. They would come to her aid, help her when she had fallen. Someone would be by her side.

"I can't believe I wasted my time on this!"

….What?

"This is disgraceful! Why isn't she getting up?"

No.

"So saddening. Someone so young to have their career taken away from them."

Please.

"She won't be dancing anymore after that."

Don't say that.

"Poor thing. Almost like a bird with a broken wing."

"Stop…" The dancer cried out, her voice still hushed amongst the waves of comments resounding through the dark sea of onlookers. The lights above her were beginning to dim, and slowly darkness was encroaching on her vision. Voices were still alive and talking, words of resentment or pity swaying back and forth through the room.

She could do nothing but lay there on the stage, hands wrapped around her leg and curled around herself. She felt her body shake like a leaf, as if abandoned in the cold of night to fend for herself against the mobs of people sitting, standing….just staring at her to do the things she could do before.

Things she could no longer do.

"Why won't she-"

"Can she-"

"Terrible-"

The words were getting louder and louder, banging in her ears like drums. No longer could she hear the blessed music of her dancing, feel herself moving freely and without care. Instead she laid there frigid and still, all but the sounds of people commenting on her, inspecting her, judging her.

Her hands jumped to her ears, clasping hard to shut out the noises.

And than she screamed as best she could above the adults watching her on stage.

"STOP-"

* * *

"-PLEASE!"

Beads of sweat rolling down the side of her lightly-toned skin, Samantha Fujisaki-Tanets sprang her body upwards out from underneath her covers, gasping for air like she had just emerged from water. Lips parted faintly, it took only a few more moments of being awake to realize her hard she was breathing and how tight her chest felt.

Her heartbeat. It was pounding so hard. Like it would spring out of her chest in the next minute if she didn't calm herself.

One hand grasping at her white pajama tank top and the other holding onto her soft cotton comforter for dear life, Samantha took one final long deep breath of air to relax herself and slowly let her fingers unfurl before she tore through it with her grip alone.

The adrenaline from whatever kind of nightmare she had making its way out of her system, the brunette collapsed back onto her soft mattress, muscles while her eyes scanned around her to familiarize where she was.

Her eyesight was still blurry, but familiar objects and colors made their way to her eyes.

Forest green walls. Curved lines of light colored paint shaped to look like flower among the walls. Wooden furniture placed neatly by the walls and sitting quietly to observe her freakout. Turning her head to her side, the brunette stared at the contents of her bed.

Small plush dolls of Pokemon lay neatly on her bed, though a few askew from her small bout of what was most likely tossing and turning. Her mint green and white comforter and sheets knocked around as well, it was clear her goodnight sleep was not…good night sleep.

That's right. She was in her bedroom. Her…new bed room she was still getting used to.

"It still doesn't feel right here." She muttered, taking in another deep breath to relax her tense muscles.

Senses starting to come back to her, Samantha started smelling the soft fragrances of fresh flowers sitting on the shelves of her room. The smells were faint, but they were relaxing to her body enough that she couldn't help but smile a little.

"What time is it?" Pushing the covers off her form, Samantha slowly moved her legs close to her and turned her body to the small nightstand sitting by her bed. A light blue clock sitting on the desktop, the clock's screen glowed with a faint light, numbers flashing the numbers eight and thirty in neon blue.

"I woke up that early?" Samantha wondered aloud, rubbing a hand across her face. "Usually I sleep in."

"Samantha? Honey, are you awake?" A muffled voice called out from a floor down.

Looking towards her bedroom door, Samantha answered as best as her tired voice could. "Y-Yeah! I'm up, mom!"

"Could you come down here and help me with some things? Breakfast is already made for you too."

"Coming!" Moving her body closer to the edge of her bed, the brunette swung her legs over her bed and slowly reached her feet down to touch the floor beneath her.

And just as quickly she regretted doing it.

"Ah!" She winced out, her right foot jumping off the floor as if the ground was lava. Hissing a bit as the pain departed, Samantha frowned and let her eyes drift down to her right foot.

A long familiar scar running across her ankle and heel, the brunette sighed and rolled her eyes sadly.

"I must be tired if I forgot about you." Unconsciously moving her toes at a wary pace as if testing her movements, Samantha rubbed a smooth hand across the her light toned caucasian skin, hoping the motion would somehow deter the pain she was feeling. Scooting over to the small nightstand next to her bed, Samantha pulled open the first drawer and grabbed a large black velcro leg brace. Putting it down next to her and lifting her right leg up close to her, the fourteen-year old began to wrap the brace around her ankle and foot at a meticulous pace.

Each wrap neatly placed on a part of her foot and tightened enough to not feel too loose nor too tight, the brunette buckled the brace with the help of a strong metal clip to secure her injury.

A few more seconds passing by, Samantha finally pushed herself off her bed and stood up straight on the floor, awaiting the potential sting of pain from her foot that came from a bad wrap up job.

No pain. That was a good sign.

"There. Now it won't feel like my foot is on fire."

Her job finished and now fully awake, Samantha made her way out of her bedroom and limped towards the stairwell, grabbing onto the smooth railing and took paced strides down the stairs. With each step the scent of flowers she'd smelled earlier began to get stronger and stronger, and soon enough a strange smell of sugar and cake mixed in with the flowery fragrance. Reaching the final steps of the stairs and finding herself in the living room of their small home, Samantha took notice of the many boxes still taped shut and with hastily written words on the sides.

 _It's going to be a real pain getting these upstairs._

"It smells like pancakes in here, mom." Samantha spoke up, hoping to find her mom in the ocean of cardboard boxes.

"That's because we're having pancakes for breakfast." The jovial voice of her mom answered, echoing from the kitchen on the right hand side. "They're your favorite. And sweets are a good way to start off a morning when you're moving."

Following her mother's voice, the petite girl made her way towards the kitchen and walked through the threshold, finding herself in a very light pink colored kitchen. There too were some boxes sitting around the room, though most were labeled "kitchen" or "food" on the sides, so none were out of place.

A small round kitchen table sat in the center of the room, two chairs tucked neatly against the table to signify the only members who lived in the house. At the sides were an array of cabinets and drawers to hold various appliances and silverware, added by a wooden countertop with a dish washer, dryer, and sink for cleaning at the far ends. A simple light hung on the ceiling above the room, the light bulb turned off since the wide paneled window above the sink was hosting the bright and early rays of the morning sun. The room was alit with warm sunlight so peaceful, Samantha was sure she could fall back asleep to the warmth.

Standing in front of the heated stove next to the refrigerator was an older woman of forty years, Samantha's mother, who was cooking up a storm in a simple yet pleasing white apron decorated with flowers. Long brown hair flowed down the side of her face, the soft locks tied in a loose ponytail that rested on her shoulder. The signs of age were upon her skin, yet even at her age her mother was the definition of a woman growing more beautiful with every passing year. She was old, but enriched in defined regality and poise that any confident woman had.

Brown eyes moving away from the pan on the stove to turn and see the newest addition of the kitchen, her mothers' lips went upwards to the kind of smile all mothers' gave their beloved children.

"Good morning, honey. Did you sleep okay?" The worried tone of her mother asked.

A hand combing through her messy brown locks, Samantha just shrugged her shoulders and answered unenthusiastically. "It was…okay, I guess." She walked over to the table and pulled out a chair, taking a seat and rested her arms atop the table. "I think my foot woke me up, though. It was hurting when I got up today."

Her mother frowned, putting down her spatula and walked to her daughter seated at the table. "Do you need me to get your pain killers, honey? If it's hurting that badly, you can take one."

"No, I'm fine. I can work through it. I'll take one if it bothers me more later." Samantha spoke while shaking her head, hoping her words would be enough to dissuade her mothers' worry.

Reluctant, her mother nodded in understanding. "Okay. But tell me if you need anything. For now, let's enjoy some pancakes before I open up the shop." Reaching for the stove knob and turning off the stove's gas, Samantha's mother grabbed a glass plate stacked with golden brown pancakes and placed them on the table in front of her child. "You eat up now. I'm going to start watering the flowers and making sure the stock is taken care of today."

Beginning to leave the room, Samantha turned in her seat to watch her mother leave. "Do you need any help, mom? You said before that you needed me for something."

Stopping mid step, Samantha's mother turned to look back at her child. "I did, but I think I'll do it myself."

Samantha grimaced. "Mom, I'm fine. I'm not some little kid who can't take care of herself. I can help you."

"I know you aren't, honey, but after what you said about your foot I'd rather not make it worse. You know tendinitis can only become worse if you overwork your muscles. And I don't want you slipping by mistake and getting worse because of me." Walking back to her daughter, Samantha's mother bent down and kissed her child on the head. "I know I keep doing this a lot. And I don't mean to, but I don't want to stress your injury and make it worse for my sake. Its been are with your father gone and-"

"Mom, I know." Samantha replied, cutting her mother off. Averting her gaze away, her eyes hesitantly moved to look back. "You don't…have to say it. I won't help today, but can I help next time? I'm not useless. And we both know this tendinitis isn't going away. I don't want you to think that I can't do anything anymore. And I want to help." She asked, almost pleading to her adult figure.

A sincere smile shining back at her, Samantha's mother nodded and hugged her daughter. "Of course, honey. Whatever you want. You can help me run the shop next time. But for now just eat your breakfast. Go out and take in the sights. It's been a week and all you've done is stay locked up in your room. Enjoy the city of Paris and get to know your new home. I want you to experience it to the fullest."

Samantha's head dipped down, not sure if she wanted to look her mother in the eye at the request. "Mom, I don't know." Samantha answered, her voice uncertain. "This whole place is so much different from New York. I'm not sure if I'm ready to go out there yet."

She would never tell her mother out loud her real thoughts everything.

It would kill her.

Two soft fingers placed beneath her chin, Samantha's head was raised up to look right into the green eyes of her mother. A motherly warmth and understanding conveyed in her eyes alone, Samantha's mother nodded. "Alright, honey. You don't have to force yourself if you don't want to. You can go out anytime you'd like, but if you do please let me know."

Another hug shared between mother and daughter, the older woman smiled and walked out of the kitchen to head out into the room beyond Samantha's vision.

Now sitting alone in the quiet kitchen of their newly moved into home, Samantha reached for a fork and knife to eat, but slowly felt her hands become heavy and place the utensils back on the table top.

Frowning, Samantha slowly pushed the plate back from herself.

Suddenly she wasn't feeling as hungry as she was before.

* * *

"I don't know how to tell her." Samantha muttered to herself, sitting neatly in a comfortable patio chair outside her room. Her backroom door entrance opened to the balcony of her room, a quiet place for her to get some air and take in the sights of her new "home".

"I can't just say that I hate it here. I don't."

 _It's really beautiful here_. _Even I can see that._

Tall buildings outstretched as far as her eyes could see, Samantha stared out at breathtaking structures that sat like works of art across the streets. From the stone sidewalks, greenery of city parks, and the infamous Eiffel Tower just across the way from her house, it was very obvious as to why her mother had suggested she go out and see the sights.

Everywhere she turned there was culture, beauty, charm.

Everything Paris was known for.

Everything she used to have.

What did she have to contribute?

"I don't belong in a place like this. Not the way I am now. Maybe back then. But now?" Samantha muttered sadly. Reaching to pick up a brochure and a slip of paper in her lap, the brunette stared at the tiny piece of paper; words scribbled in neat cursive.

Her mother wanting her to get accustomed to their new home had been kind enough to write their address down. After all, she would need to remember where she lived now that she was in a new setting.

"Twelve Rue Gotlib, Twenty-First Are…A-Aro…Arondissement? Why can't they just say an apartment number or something?" Samantha wondered aloud, folding the slip of paper and placing it in her pocket. "It's hard enough trying to remember how to get home, but this address is already not making any sense."

Taking the next item on her lap, Samantha stared at a light cream colored brochure decorated with a picture of a school building. It looked fancier than any school she'd been to, that was a given. Tall and pristine in architecture, defining in size and look.

It was the kind of school that a lot of people would kill to go to, especially since it focused on the talents of artists. From what her mother told her and what she skimmed when reading it, College Franciose Dupont was an academic marvel in Paris and was made to teach kids her age about her regular education, while focusing heavily on the arts such as painting, fashion and designing.

A very fun and interesting line of courses, but not really her forte. The most she could do was come up with some pretty original designs if she sketched all day without interruption, but even then it was hard enough drawing and turning it into an actual piece of clothing.

"I'm going to get eaten alive here." She muttered, slapping the brochure against her face before pulling it away to stare at the roof of the school from her spot. "I wonder why mom chose this school for me."

It did look nice. It was a well known school from what she knew and just about every kid wanting to work in the arts went there.

It also didn't hurt that it was just a block or so away from their new home. It was better than being stuck in a boring school where she only went to learn general education and do some physical activity.

But it would still be challenging. Finding something there that would help her feel welcome. Make her feel at home and help her find out her path. Maybe once she met people…

Her shoulders suddenly scrunched close to her, the brunette crushing the pamphlet accidentally in her hands.

"Wait, how am I going to make any friends?" Samantha pondered, getting up from her chair slowly and tapping her braced foot on the tile of the balcony. "I'm not the most popular girl around and I'm going to get judged right when I walk in this new school year. How am I supposed to act? Is there some kind of dress code? What do people in Paris talk about?"

Getting a bit frazzled by her new predicament, Samantha looked back at her room and noticed her reflection in the glass door.

She wasn't...ugly, right?

She wasn't the type to stand out to get attention. Long brown hair that rested past her shoulders, but sometimes had a mind of its own with strands poking out even when combed.

That had always been a problem of hers.

Her height was quite small for her age of fourteen, standing at the measly size of four foot and eleven inches, or even five feet exactly if she was wearing the right shoes.

People were going to tower over her when she got there.

Light caucasian skin waved across her form and thankfully she'd been blessed with minor blemishes and clear skin and a heart shaped face. She looked a bit childish, but at least she knew how to take care of her skin.

And lastly was her pretty boring dark brown eyes. Not that brown eyes were boring or anything, but a lot of people had brown eyes. The combination of all her looks overall coupled with her small body frame, there didn't seem to be any quality about Samantha now that made her stand out in a way that she'd make a lot of friends. Her overall score was average at best.

Well, she did technically have something that Mae her stand out.

Dark brown eyes stared down at her tapping foot in her reflection, the limb stopping once her eyes settled on it.

It was so hard when she first got hurt and had to heal. After people saw her with this, the jokes would never stop because for some weird reason people with disabilities were perfect targets for bullying in some's sick minds.

But her mom said Paris would be different. That not every place has the same people, places, and things to see and experience. She may miss her old home, but now that she was here people would surely be kinder about her situation.

She wouldn't have to hear anymore insults from others her age, right?

" _I bet a turtle could beat you in a race with that thing you have on."_

" _Did you forget to take your cuff off after breaking out of jail?_

" _Have fun running your laps, slowpoke._

But those insults were never the worst ones. They were bad, but the worst were from adults who said things behind her back. To her mother who was the only one in her life now.

" _Oh, the poor thing. I feel so sorry for her."_

" _I bet it must be rough having a child who has trouble walking."_

" _She used to dance? She must have been so lovely before the accident."_

" _Your husband passed? I'm so sorry. The load must be so heavy on you and your daughter."_

Samantha disliked the bullying, but nothing compared to those comments. To the remarks. The sad looks in people's eyes and talking to her mother in such a sad tone.

The pity!

Samantha shut her eyes, hands clutching themselves into fists at her sides. "No, you need to stop thinking about that. I'm not going back down that road. Not again."

 _I already know I've lost so much. I don't need people always reminding me. Reminding mom about what she's lost!_

Trying to release the anger building up inside her, Samantha limped her way back into her room and slammed the door behind her. Heading to her bed she picked up a comfort of her life, a soft Pikachu plush doll and hugged it to her chest and took a quiet plop onto her desk chair.

"I'm…scared." She said quietly, burying her face into her plush Pikachu. "I wish dad was here. He'd tell me everything would be okay." Her arms wrapped around her doll tighter, and Samantha clenched her teeth together. "I'm not ready for this. A new life in a new place. Starting over without him. Without…"

Trying to wipe the tears threatening to leak from her eyes, Samantha rubbed her face deeper into her plush doll and moved her head upwards to stare at the top of her desk, a framed picture sitting neatly in the far corner.

The wooden frame held a small photo, the subject being only a single person. The subject was a little girl, no older than seven dressed in a wine red leotard and white tights. Worn looking red dance shoes covering her feet and brown hair tied up in a proper bun, bright brown eyes filled with excitement and pleasure beamed from what the picture could say without words.

In the small child's hands was a plaque, a framed paper signed with a gold seal, blue ribbon and neat cursive on the parchment easily spotted in the photo. While the words on the paper could not be read from the photo, whatever it was made the girl smile so bright that it seemed like nothing could destroy her spirit.

Eyes of the depressed teen staring back at the permanently innocent eyes of the young girl in the photo, Samantha reached out to the picture and lazily pushed it downwards, the photo falling face down onto the desktop.

Moving back to face her room and continuing to hold her Pokemon plush close to her, Samantha let out a heavy sigh, a weight crushing down on her chest despite her efforts to try and relax.

"Why can't everything go back to normal?"

Not a single flower in her room tried to answer her.

* * *

"Mom, I'm going to go out."

Dressed in a simple white tank top and blue cotton hoodie, Samantha pulled at the loops on her pants and adjusted the jeans around her waist. Hair still a bit messy despite combing it three times, Samantha opted to place her hood over her head, hiding the crazy strings that were her hair for the time being.

It had been a while since her...tantrum she guess she'd call it. After washing her face from some crying, fixing her photo back upright and taking some time to get some fresh air on her balcony, Samantha finally decided it was time to do what her mother asked her to do.

Go out and see her new home.

She wasn't going anywhere else anytime soon and school was coming up in just a week. She'd need to prepare. At least try not to look stupid by being late on the first day.

"While you're out dear, could you do something for me?" Her mother called, making Samantha look up towards the hallway her mother was calling from.

"You...want my help?" She asked, a bit surprised that her mother was letting her help so soon already. She asked to let her help perhaps only a few hours ago, half the day already passing by and the afternoon nearly upon them.

"I got a special order I need you to take. It's a bonsai tree that needs to be delivered since the customer can't make it all the way here. I have to stay here to watch the shop or we might miss out on some new customers today." Her mother explained, walking out with a colorful paper bag holding the bonsai tree in a secure box. Reaching the bag over to her daughter, Samantha's mother smiled warmly to her child. "Can you do it, honey?"

Limping over to her mother as little as possible to show her prowess, Samantha reached out to her mother and took the bag out of her hands, her mother receiving a small smile in response. This would be her chance to prove she could help her mother with anything. "I can do it, mom. I'll deliver it faster than you can say lisianthus." She joked.

The smile felt a bit forced in Samantha's opinion, the action doing little to dissuade the hesitation deep inside her. However, she needed to look and seem her best.

If not for herself, for her mother.

Understanding the poor joke, her mother nodded and patted her daughters' head. "Alright. Just call me if something happens. Oh, and don't forget these." Going back to the kitchen for a moment, her mother swiftly came back and handed Samantha a familiar pill bottle.

Lazily shaking the bottle in her hand, Samantha nodded knowingly to her mother and put the bottle away in a small purse hanging on her shoulder. "I'll be careful, mom. You don't have to worry. I'll be back in a while. I'll call when I deliver this." Hugging her mother goodbye and headed out, Samantha shut the door behind her and took to the sidewalk, bonsai tree bag and purse knocking against her with each limping step.

It was time to walk to streets of her new home!

* * *

"Okay, this is hurting a lot more than I thought it would."

It hadn't been very long when Samantha was honestly starting to regret her decision of walking all the way to deliver the bonsai in her grasp. Just twenty or so steps in through the passing markets of Paris and her foot was starting to gain a dull ache, along with the tiring motion of having to drag her heavy foot off the ground to avoid tripping or slipping.

It was these kind of moments that Samantha wished for the old scenery of New York. The smooth surface of dirt under her heavy foot that would cushion her weak limb from construction, the difference in up and down slopes of hills on the way to her old school and the quaint shortcuts through some connecting neighborhoods to make her trips far less taxing and tedious.

Paris didn't have the kind of shortcuts she was used to.

The scenery was far from having soft dirt on the road.

And there were no down hills in sight. Just...straight paths that didn't change.

Her foot couldn't take much more of this!

"I've just started. I'm not going to start throwing a pill in my mouth over some minor pain. I just need to find this guy. What was his name and address again?" Reaching into the gift bag and pulling out the small receipt of paper, Samantha nervously stared at the paper, her mothers' writing this time becoming harder to decipher than usual. "Mister….Lu? Did mom write her cursive too fast again? I can't read the name this time."

Upside down, sideways, and upside down. No direction no matter how many times Samantha looked at the paper suddenly made the recipient's name become any clearer.

"At least the address is legible. But these street signs are not easy to read." She muttered stuffing the paper back in her pocket.

Heading down the sidewalk and taking a turn around the park nearby, Samantha let her eyes wander around to the buildings and shops she was passing by while trying to spot a clue to where she'd need to go.

Cafes people would see out of movies stood by. Buildings framed in artwork. Tourists taking pictures and enjoying the sights. Artists also seemed to be on every street corner she spotted.

Painters, musicians, writers, designers who sketched in notepads. There was talent every time Samantha turned a corner or crossed a street. The city of lights as people would call it held more to it than just fancy lighting and beautiful scenery. Every person she noticed or watched seemed to have a story to tell, a talent or trait they wanted to show to others. For fun, for their own enjoyment, to inspire others.

It was beautiful and poetic to talk about and see.

Stopping on the edge of the next crosswalk in her path to wait for the light to change, Samantha momentarily leaned on the light post next to her for a rest, her brown eyes momentarily gazing around and falling back on the tall symbol of Paris itself, the Eiffel Tower.

 _I wonder if this is what mom meant when she said I should enjoy the city_. _To see the beauty of the place I'll be calling home. All of these painters and artists are nice to see…but to make me happy? I don't know. Nothing...would make me happier than-_

The sound of a harsh car horn blaring in the air, Samantha shrieked in fear and jumped a bit, her thoughts cut short by the noise.

"Hey, old man! Get out of the way!"

"Who's yelling so loudly?" Samantha pondered aloud, her head turning to try and spot what the commotion was. Finding the subject just ahead of her, Samantha couldn't help but frown.

Tired and hunched over a cane, an older goateed man of what she guessed was Asian descent hobbled across the cross walk at a slow speed. Hand clutching his cane and the other trying to hold his back straight, the old man took each step at a tired man's pace, clearing only an inch or two with every step.

He was slow, perhaps even slower than Samantha was with her tendinitis; and that trait alone was the reason for the sudden car horn. Eyes drifting off to the street from far away, the sight of a car driving down the road at a fast speed made the brunette's blood run cold.

The car was going too fast. The old man was moving at far too slow a speed to get to the other side in time, even if he booked it into old man overdrive! At the rate he was going, he was going to…

Samantha shook her head, forcing herself to stop thinking before her mind jumped to the dark and inevitable conclusion. Eyes darting back and forth to look for someone who'd be heading the old man's way soon, Samantha realized that the few people who were around the same place she was….weren't even paying attention! They didn't even seem to notice what was going on or what was about to happen!

If nobody did something soon than...

 _I've got to move!_

Not realizing her body was already moving by the time she'd finished her realization, Samantha felt herself already limping quickly into the crosswalk, heading towards the old stranger as fast as she could with her leg brace. Throwing the wrapped bonsai tree bag off to the side in her fit of adrenaline and fear, Samantha ignored the burning pain in her ankle and rushed to the old mans' side, reaching and hand out to hastily grab onto the old man tightly.

" _Sorry if I pull too hard, sir!"_ Samantha yelled in some broken French, doing the exact action she described and pulled the man as hard as she could towards her. Pushing herself back from the force of her own body and taking the old man with her towards the sidewalk, Samantha and the old man fell hard onto the sidewalk, finding themselves to be safe and far away from any danger.

The sound of a car horn and the metal vehicle cutting through the air, Samantha sighed with tired relief at the car that had been close to hitting her and the old man now come and gone.

"Thank goodness. That was way too close." Samantha breathed out, her body shaking from adrenaline and feeling as if it was melting into jelly. However the moment was short lived when the brunette remembered what had just occurred.

Forcing herself to sit up despite the lack of solid nerves in her arms, Samantha turned to check on the old man next to her. " _S-Sir, are you alright?"_ She asked in French, shifting to her left leg for better support and reaching a hand out to the old man.

Groaning a bit from the fall, the old man rubbed his head a bit, but opened his eyes to look at Samantha and smiled. "I am alright. Thank you for helping me, miss. If not for you, I'd be an old man pancake." He joked in English, taking her hand.

A bit surprise by the sudden language change, Samantha smiled awkwardly, unsure if the fall was making her hear strangely. "Y-You speak English?"

"Yes, quite well. Along with French, Japanese, and Chinese. It's never unnecessary to know another language or two. It makes it much easier if I need to thank a young girl for helping me." The man mentioned, a small wink sent her way.

A bit taken back by the joking demeanor of the old man, Samantha chuckled too and nodded while getting up from the ground. "It...was nothing. I just wanted to he-ah!"

A familiar sting of pain radiating through her, Samantha stopped moving and reached down to her right leg, hand wrapping around her ankle that felt like it was bursting into flames.

 _Not again. Of course I'd mess my foot up from saving someone. Just my luck._

"Miss, are you alright?" The old man asked, worry crossing his features at her pained expression.

"I'm…f-fine," Samantha mustered out. Trying her best to mask the pain, the brunette dug out the pill bottle her mother had given to her from her purse. Opening the cap and tapping the bottle, a small white pill fell out of the canister. Closing the lid shut, the teen popped it into her mouth, ignoring the bitter taste and swallowing it down.

A shiver from the disgusting taste passing through her and the medication slowly taking effect, Samantha pushed herself up from the ground and rubbed her ankle. "I'm fine. I have medicine for it. I'm really more worried about you."

"I am alright thanks to you," The old man answered, a nod of affirmation clear. "Not many would be willing to jump into traffic for a random stranger. And for someone so young and injured themselves to do so? You are much braver than most adults I've seen. Or a bit more reckless."

Samantha felt her face heat up a bit, the kind compliments coming her way making her blush. "I-I just did what I thought was right." She muttered, a hand scratching her head. "And my body kind of acted on its own."

"It was still a brave thing to do, no matter how much you thought about it." The old man answered, a kind smile shining to the teen. "However, I am sorry that you had to discard whatever was in that bag for my safety." He spoke, moving his cane to point to the gift bag a foot away.

The word "bag" suddenly blaring an alarm in her head, Samantha hastily turned back to look at the bag in question, only to feel her face that was once warm with compliments, drop fifty degrees and go cold.

"Ahh! The bag!" Samantha yelled, her once quiet demeanor flying out the door and replaced with the pure fear and erratic behavior of a scared teen her age. Running...or rather limping to the bag, Samantha bent down to pick up the tossed bonsai tree and inspected the small plant with keen eyes.

Sadly, her eyes would already spot the small broken branch of the tree laying in the bag, along with a few bits of tossed dirt in the bag. While most of the tree was intact, whoever was going to receive this tree would notice it was not in the most prime conditions.

"Oh no. What am I going to do?" Samantha asked herself, anxiety rising through her like a gust of wind. Her heartbeat going a mile a minute at this point, the teen started to take quick breaths in and out, feeling a bit light headed a moment later. "I can't give this to the customer. They'll want a refund! And than mom's reputation is going to go down the drain and nobody will come to the store and we won't be able to pay the bills!"

"Miss, if you'd like I could help deliver the plant."

The sound of another voice stopping Samantha from ranting any further, the brunette turned back to realize she the man was still with her. Frowning back at the old man, Samantha shook her head. "Oh no, I couldn't make you do that, sir. It wasn't your fault this happened. I shouldn't have been so careless and threw it."

"That's nonsense. You only did so to save me from that car. I am sure if I go with you to whomever this plant is to be delivered to, I can explain the situation to them and make whatever punishment they think of much more lenient. Or at least help pay for a new one. It's the least I can do." The old man suggested.

Hands wrapping tightly around the bag's handles, Samantha pulled the bonsai tree close to her, unsure if she wanted the old man to see the mess she'd made. She'd never been in a situation like this. Was it right to say yes and take the offer, or stick to taking responsibility herself and say no?

It wasn't like she meant for this to happen, and it was an accident.

"A-Are you sure?" She asked hesitantly, eyes drifting from the bag to the old man.

Seeing the nervousness shine through, the old man hobbled over to Samantha and nodded confidently to her. "It would be my pleasure to help the person who saved me. Think of it as repaying you for your heroism."

Smiling faintly, Samantha nodded slowly to show she understood, slowly lowering the bag to give the old man a better look. "Umm...Okay. Thank you."

"Haha. It is no trouble. Now, let us see what we've got here." Moving to hold his cane in his left hand, the old man moved his right hand to push the ends of the gift bag open to inspect the plant in question. Noticing the colorful, but lightly dirty results of the bonsai tree slightly toppled over, the old mans' eyes widened a bit in surprise before turning up to look at Samantha.

"A bonsai tree? Now you don't see these in Paris everyday." The old man commented, a curious spark in his eyes.

"Isn't it pretty? My mom and I run a flower shop a block or so from here. We've only opened up recently, but we already got a customer who ordered something special. I have to get it to him, but I'm not sure if he'll be happy with the results. Bonsai trees can be very expensive and hard to manage if broken." Samantha muttered, worry making its way into her voice.

"I see," The old man added, taking his hand away from the bag and motioning Samantha to hand him something. "Were you given directions to the address or the name of the person who this tree is to be given to?"

"Oh, yeah. I've got it right here." Digging her hand into her pants pocket, Samantha pulled out the piece of paper containing the address and customer name, handing it to the man. "I'm sorry if the cursive is sloppy. I think my mom wrote it in a rush, so I've been having trouble translating the name. I think it says-"

"Mr. Fu."

"Wha?" Samantha asked, a bit surprised with how fast the old man read the cursive. She'd been reading it wrong this whole day?! "It says Mr. _Fu_?"

Nodding, the old man nodded. "Yes, it does. I should know. It is my name and address on here."

Smiling and feeling a weight lifted off her shoulders, Samantha chuckled. "Oh, that makes more sense. Of course you'd..."

The words told to her by the old man sinking into her brain, Samantha's words began to hang in the air as relief and confusion clashed inside her head. After just a few more moments of confusion and silence, Samantha felt her eyes widen largely and pointed a finger at the old man.

"Wait! You're Mr. Lu? I-I mean, Mr. Fu?" She asked incredulously, correcting herself for a moment.

Another nod in her direction, the old man, now known as Mr. Fu, confirmed her question with a joking tone and a wink of his eye. "Yes. I am Mr. Fu. Not Mr. _Lu_."

Samantha couldn't stop the blush of embarrassment from rising in her cheeks at the joke Mr. Fu had made. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be-"

Mr. Fu laughed, holding a hand to stop Samantha from speaking further. "It's much alright, miss. There's no need to be afraid you offended me. I'm only surprise we met in such interesting circumstances, you and I. To think you were looking for me to deliver the bonsai I ordered, only to find me after saving my life. Why it almost sounds like fate brought us together."

A tingle of embarrassment lighting inside her chest, Samantha felt her cheeks redden at the playful comment. "Well, I don't know about fate. It'd be rude if fate meant for me to break this. Or maybe I'm just clumsy."

"That would be true, and quite funny." Mr. Fu mentioned, chuckling at Samantha's latter comment. "Now from what I can see of this bonsai, it may have some damage, but I can surely fix it right up. It is still alright to give to me."

"I-It is?" Samantha asked incredulously. "But...there's dirt everywhere and a branch is broken."

"That is true, but bonsai can be salvaged with enough time. A small branch is broken from the main truck, but as long as the whole is intact, it will continue to grow." Mr. Fu explained, opening the bag ever so slightly as the two peeked at the plant in question. "I'll just take it home and repot it. I have plenty of old bonsai tree pots that could use a new tree for a resident."

Hearing the lesson in bonsai from her newfound customer, Samantha smiled at the small bonsai and looked back at Mr Fu. "So...would you still like me to deliver it to your home, sir? I can still walk there if you'd like me to carry it the rest of the way."

"That's very kind of you miss, however I am sure your mother is wondering where you are. If you'd still like to help me, you can walk about half the way carrying the bonsai for me." Mr. Fu suggested, placing his cane back in his right hand and beginning to walk in the direction towards his home.

"S-Sure! It would be my pleasure as an employee of _Belle Fleur_." Samantha agreed, clutching the bag close to her and slowly following after the old man.

In her head, Samantha was glad that she could walk the same pace all the way there.

* * *

"So Samantha, you've only recently moved here?"

Samantha originally had an entire day planned out for herself. She was going to deliver the bonsai tree her mother had asked her too, go find her school and know the way there and back so she wouldn't get lost. Perhaps even take some time for herself and look around the shops by her new home.

Never did she think that she'd find herself having a warm cup of green tea with the customer she was making the delivery to. Or save his life from a speeding car. Or almost break the item he'd ordered.

It was a day of many unexpected things for Samantha.

After she had made it exactly half the way to Mr. Fu's home, the old man had been clear that her duty had been done and she could go home. However, a piece of her deep down had decided to finish the delivery through. While it could have been the regret from throwing the bonsai, to wanting to be sure Mr. Fu would make it home safely, or simply just wanting to be responsible, Samantha did not back down and made it clear she would continue walking with him until he got home.

She was a bit stubborn like that.

And so with a lot more walking in her future and almost slipping on a sidewalk curb from not paying attention, Samantha Fujisaki-Tanets successfully arrived at Mr. Fu's home.

Which lead to her getting really tired and her foot burning extremely badly from the long walk. With resting her leg a needed precaution to lower the inflammation of her muscles, Mr. Fu had offered her a chance to rest at his small yet comfortably furnished home. Seated cross legged on a small tatami mat and placed in front of a small coffee table, the brunette basked in the calming decorum of Mr. Fu's home and started to enjoy her break.

Some yummy green tea to enjoy along with .

Now that she had some time to relax and unwind, Samantha and Mr. Fu decided to conversing bit by bit. About the weather, what Mr. Fu had been up to when she bumped into him, how she was enjoying the sights of Paris.

Which opened up a small conversation about her new life there.

To think she was talking about her new life in Paris with a customer of the flower shop.

Placing another pain killer in her mouth and swallowing it with the help of a sip of green tea, Samantha sighed out a warm breath and let her shoulders relax. "Yeah. My mother and I got here only a week ago and just a few days go we opened _Belle Fleur_ , our flower shop."

Brown eyes dropping down to stare into the tea leaf juice in her cup, Samantha absentmindedly let her thumb rub along the rim of the glass. "I'm still...adjusting. It's not easy moving from one country to another. Everything is kind of hard to understand and tough to get used to."

Taking a sip of his own tea, Mr. Fu nodded in understanding. "I understand. It was not easy when I came to Paris either. Cultures are quite different from one another when you step into another land, but you see after a while that we aren't so different once you take a better look."

"A better look?" Samantha asked, her head tilting to the side curiously.

"Yes. At first you could just see buildings and homes as starkly different from what you are used to at first glance, whether it be from color, how it's built, or even the shape. Yet if you look beyond that, homes here in Paris do exactly the same things as homes back in America. Shelter us when we need somewhere safe to go to, be a place to call home for others, or simply be the place where your family is." Mr. Fu spoke calmly, nodding his head in thought.

"I guess I never thought of it like that." Samantha replied, eyes drifting back to her tea. Now that the words settled in her mind, Mr. Fu was right in his own regard. Despite the large changes that she was having to get accustomed to, Paris in a way wasn't far too different from her old home. There were still people walking around, lives being lived and she and her mother had a place to call home.

It was sort of the same in the end. There were just a few things she needed to get used to.

"So, what are your hobbies my dear?" Mr. Fu inquired with a smile. "Have you found anything here that has piqued your interest to make a change in your life? Or try something new? We may not have that basketball or football here, but we have many skills in the arts that I am sure you'd enjoy." The old man joked with a laugh.

Smiling a little at the playful question, Samantha felt her shoulders sag a bit at the inquiry. "I've seen a lot of things today. Paris holds such much art and skill that it's clear you can't help but want to try something new. But..."

Sadness creeping up on her face, Samantha frowned at her reflection in her tea. "I don't think I belong here much. I can't do much the way I am now."

"The way you are now? What is wrong with who you are?" Mr. Fu questioned.

Suddenly feeling on the spot by the question, Samantha's body became rigid as she tightly held her cup of tea and tried to formulate a response. "Uh, no no! Um, I mean there's nothing wrong wrong with me. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with having my injury or anything like that. I'm perfectly fine. It's just..."

Samantha felt her voice trail off, her mind unable to catch up with her mouth as she felt nothing else leave her lips. Feeling almost frozen in time, she let out a nervous breath of air that felt trapped in her chest.

"Samantha, are you alright?" Mr. Fu asked, a look of concern on his face seeing her sudden shift in behavior.

"Y-Yes, I'm fine. There's..." She tried again, but once more her voice became nonexistent. Almost as if something was stopping her from making her statement true.

Well, it wasn't really true at all. But she'd said this so many times. Why was it suddenly impossible for her to say it again to Mr. Fu?

Maybe it was because he was so kind to her? Or that he was a stranger? Someone she didn't know and needed to be happy for their sake. Who was honest and listening to her.

She didn't want to lie anymore. Not to Mr. Fu. Or herself.

Just this once.

"I'm sorry," Samantha spoke softly, almost a whisper at how hard it felt to voice her next few words. "I lied. There is...has been something bothering me. I just didn't...I don't want to ruin the mood."

"My dear, there is nothing wrong with wanting to speak the truth. Go ahead. I will not mind." Mr. Fu said, nothing but sincerity conveyed in both his facial expression and voice.

Feeling a warmth in her chest, some strength returned to the nervous brunette before she began to express her thoughts.

"I...used to be a dancer, you know?" Samantha asked, trying to sound cheery despite how much her attitude was not. "Ballet. I started when I was really young and I was really good. Like, really _really_ good. I wanted to dance forever." Samantha said, a smile trying to form on her face as she felt herself laugh a bit at how silly she was sounding.

"It sounds quite wonderful, Samantha." Mr. Fu said, smiling to the girl who was opening up to her from across the table.

Samantha looked back to Mr. Fu, smiling to make herself look less like a sniveling child. "It was. Or I think it was. But you know, not all dreams last forever.

I was little. There was this really big dance recital I'd been practicing for every day. It was a big deal. Get noticed there and you could get one of those dance scholarships for school. Or even get accepted into some of the top dance studios. I wanted to prove myself so much so I could continue dancing because it made people smile. It made my parents really happy and proud and it'd brighten up people's day. Made them feel better when they were down. But, there was this car accident on the way..."

Her throat feeling like it was closing up from the well of emotions being opened, the brunette shut her eyes closed. Almost believing if she tried hard enough it would all go away.

"My dear," Mr. Fu spoke, reaching over to place a hand on the teen's shoulder. "You do not have to speak anymore if you do not wish to. I do not want to be the one to make you relive painful memories."

Sniffling at the kind words from Mr. Fu, Samantha warily opened her eyes and wiped her sleeve across her eyes. She hadn't noticed at first, but after she could feel the sensation of wetness from tears on her shirt. "I'm...I'm sorry. My mom tells me I cry a lot when I get really emotional."

The two just sitting together for a few moments of silence, Mr. Fu let Samantha continue to cry a bit more, letting whatever she needed out before grabbing some cookies to rest on the table, as well as refilling her tea.

"I apologize for bringing anything unwanted up." Mr. Fu spoke, handing Samantha the small tray of cookies to make her feel better. "I may be old, but I should be wise enough to know when not to make someone speak of things that want to be left unsaid."

Shaking her head and nibbling on a cookie that felt bitter despite its clear sweetness, Samantha shined a weak smile to Mr. Fu. "No, it's okay. It's not your fault at all. Really. This isn't the first time I've felt like this. I've felt like this since...For as long as I can remember."

Taking a long sip of tea to replenish the liquid she'd lost from crying, Samantha sighed and slowly placed the cup back on the table. "When my dad died and my leg...changed, everything in my world suddenly just disappeared. I didn't have a parent anymore and I couldn't do the thing I loved; that helped make people smile. It was hard to be happy for some time and I didn't want to do much of anything anymore, but I've been trying to do better and not be so sad with the changes and the move."

Eyes squinting at the sort of shame she felt at her own words, Samantha continued on. "It's been seven years since it all happened. I thought I'd be over it. Or gotten past it all. I mean, I want to get past it. Not just for me, but for my mother. She's trying so hard and I don't want to let her down. But it feels like its getting harder to smile, if that makes sense."

Sighing, Samantha concentrated on the last of her thoughts, feeling her center of gravity as her shoulders relaxed. She couldn't place the last time she'd felt like this. Not so heavy and calm.

Maybe Mr. Fu was just a really easy person to talk to.

"There's nothing wrong with Paris. It's beautiful. The people here are kind and I can feel the warmth from this city. It could easily be my new home, but sometimes I don't just want to look at it. There's so much talent and art here. It just reminds me of...what I can't do anymore. What I wish I could do again." She concluded, shoulders slumping in defeat at finally finishing her thoughts.

"I see." Mr. Fu replied, the words simple enough to answer her, yet strong enough in weight alone to make Samantha look back at him. "You have endured quite the journey at an age so young. I am sorry that seeing Paris makes you feel that way."

"I-It's not your fault, Mr. Fu. It really is just me." Samantha said, shaking her head to push away the doubts of the older man. "I think there's just still something inside me I have to fix. Or maybe I'm just still not grown up yet." Rubbing her eyes again to be sure no more tears were running down her face, Samantha forced a smile on her face and started getting up from her seat. "I...I should probably get going. My mom is going to wonder where I am after being gone so long."

Getting up from his own seat, Mr. Fu stepped towards Samantha and handed her a small box of cookies from his cabinet. "Here. For you and your mother. Please send her my warmest regards. Both for her shop and your service."

Taking the box of sweets, Samantha nodded and held it close. "T-Thank you. And...I'm sorry I took up your time like this. I know this was supposed to be a chance to rest, but I ended up taking up all our time and I was complaining."

"My dear, this time we spent was perfectly fine. I heard no complaining whatsoever from you. Only a chance to talk truthfully." Resting a hand on the brunette's shoulder, Mr. Fu gave the girl a determined stare. "You have gone through many hardships so early in life, but do not think that there is no place for you here in Paris. The city is a big place and many people live here, but we could always use someone new to bring something to Paris." Taking his hand away and placing it with his other behind his back, Mr. Fu smiled. "I am always happy to have some company if you ever need to talk like this again. Or deliver a slightly broken bonsai tree." He joked with a chuckle.

Laughing a bit at his comment, Samantha nodded and bowed politely to the older man. "Thank you. I'll...think about what you said, Mr. Fu. And if I feel like talking, I'll come by again But I think I'd like to hear some stories from you too. So I don't sound like a chatterbox."

Waving goodbye to one another, Samantha carefully opened the door and closed it shut behind her, leaving Mr. Fu back by himself in his small home.

The room now silent, Mr. Fu let out a deep sigh. Closing his eyes and shaking his head, he spoke up. "Wayzz, you may come out now."

Hearing the call to come back in, a small green form flew out from behind a potted plant, floating over to Mr. Fu's side. It was tiny, no larger than a bug or a tiny keychain. It's body green and eyes yellow, its form appeared somewhat turtle-like; a little shell on its back but exuded an energy of time old.

"The poor girl. Her past has tracked herself through terrible events." The creature known as Wayzz spoke, eyes turning to look back at the door the other human had walked out of.

"Indeed. It seems as though hardships are coming to children younger and younger these days." Mr. Fu replied, walking through his home towards a phonograph resting on his desk. Tired eyes staring at the object in heavy silence, Mr. Fu grabbed at two dragons carvings on its' body and began typing in a familiar sequence of buttons that appeared underneath. The last button pressed, the clink of metal opening and shifting from the phonograph opened up to reveal a large wooden jewelry box, Chinese in design.

Eyes widening at the actions being down by Master Fu, Wayzz rushed over to the old man's side. "Master, what are you doing?"

"Thinking, Wayzz." Master Fu said, opening the large jewelry box to reveal a colorful assortment of drawers and carvings. Shades of orange, pink, red, black, purple and various others splashed against the jewelry box in spectacular fashion, adding by carvings of metal that were designed to look like animal traits. A fox, bee, cat paw, a moth, a ladybug and so much more.

Yet instead of reaching towards any of the ones at the center, Master Fu motioned for Wayzz's attention. "Wayzz, the key if you would."

"But Master, _that_ Miraculous?" The creature asked.

"It is alright, Wayzz."

Hearing the calm maturity from the old man, Wayzz nodded hesitantly before reaching his tiny arms out in front of him, a glow of white light appearing between their arms. Glowing brighter and brighter and expanding with power, the light suddenly exploded and a key gently fell into the hand of Master Fu.

"Thank you." Master Fu said before turning back to the jewelry box. Bending down past the various drawers holding who knew what, Master Fu reached the final drawer at the bottom which was locked by a keyhole and placed the given key within. Turning it enough to hear the soft click of acceptance, the old man pulled the unlocked drawer open to reveal another tinier box, it's paint chipped and dusty from being left hidden away for so long.

Taking the old box out, Master Fu stared at it for quite some timer before beginning to dust it off.

"Master, are you thinking of giving that girl a Miraculous?" Wayzz asked.

"If I am?" Master Fu replied, looking back to the turtle Miraculous.

"Master, I would not question your judgement and believe that girl could have potential, but to give her any Miraculous, are you planning to give her that one?" Wayzz asked nervously.

"Do you think she can't handle it?" Mr. Fu questioned.

"It is not a question of handling it master, however we both know how powerful the Miraculous is. The cat and the ladybug hold immeasurable power, but this one can revert what has been broken. Heal the worst damage seen and unseen. Its power can be used for great good, but it can be tainted far quicker than any of the other Miraculous. Is that not why we sealed it away? So it would not fall into the hands of greed?"

"I did not feel any greed nor spite in her, Wayzz. All I could feel was sadness and regret in those words she spoke." Wiping the dust off the old wooden box, Mr. Fu stared down at the pure white engraving carved on top of the box in thought. "You heard her yourself. She cannot even look at Paris without being reminded of her past. Of the thing that she held dear now taken away from her. She feels as if there is no use for her being in this city. Perhaps even living her day to day life the way she is."

Eyes drifting from the box to his master, Wayzz felt their own eyes widen with realization. "You...intend to give her the Miraculous to help her heal?"

"In a way, yes." Master Fu spoke, eyes catching the glint of pearl that was once covered by dust in the animal carving on the box. "Miraculous have minds of their own. To be used to their fullest extent, they must be used by those capable to understand and use its power. Less I make the same mistake again." Shaking his head and a dark memory, Mr. Fu spoke again. "What makes healing so dangerous is how many think just fixing damage will make everything better again, but that is not the case. To truly know how to heal someone, it takes a person who has felt that very pain. It will be a hard journey for her, but I believe Samantha could become an exceptional healer for those hurting in Paris. Or in the very least give her a first step at finding her own purpose."

The dust now cleared from the box, Master Fu felt a small smile overtake his lips as the carving of white appeared in his eyes. The black body still chipped of its paint and few streaks of red lined across the body, a small carving lined with thin layers of metal rested at the top of the box; shaped ever so slightly to form the shape of a bird. Added by the slightly dulled shine of pearl resting in its shape, Master Fu let his thumb rub over the symbol of a pure white swan with outstretched wings.

"Let us wait and see for the time being. If that time ever does arrive when Paris needs help healing, I believe that young girl could do that and more if given the chance."


	2. Dark Cupid: Prelude

Not chapter 2, but at least it's something! A quick and cute Valentine's prompt I wish I could have had ready by the actually holiday a few days ago, here it is. Think of it like a preview for the kinds of things to come. Chapter 2 may still take some time due to school, but please enjoy this for now. :3

* * *

Author's Note: This chapter takes place after "Stoneheart Pt. 1-2" of the story in it's own little canon timeline, so don't worry a bit about continuity all that much. It's just for fun reading. X3

* * *

"I'd like thirty roses, please!"

"Do you have any camellias? My wife loves those!"

"Can you get this delivered to this address by this time today?"

Samantha cupped her hands against her ears to shield them from the waves of sounds being blasted at her. One after another requests after requests of various kinds were yelled across the tiny storefront of her family's flower shop, _Belle Fleur_ , with seemingly no end in sight. But Samantha should have expected this kind of outcome for weeks.

It was Valentine's Day after all.

' _The horrors of working in a flower shop.'_ The brunette thought sadly, standing behind the counter of the store while she tried to navigate through question after question one after another. Her mother, the poor woman, had been forced to rush in the back to grab all the flowers since Samantha couldn't run on her bad foot, so it was her job to round up every order asked and be sure every customer had gotten what they'd come in for.

And she would do just that with all the concentration and preciseness she could.

The _Belle Fleur_ name would not be tarnished on the holiday of love!

Lowering her hands away from her ears as customers she'd helped began to leave the store and diminish the crowds, Samantha pulled on the collar of her shirt to help her breath better, groaning internally at the slight wet sensation on her fingertips from the nervous sweat she'd been making from the crowds overwhelming her for almost two hours straight. And after all the trouble of trying to make a semi-presentable outfit for the day.

To help bring in the customers, Samantha's mother urged Samantha to try and dress as nice, but casually as she could in a small amount of time. It hadn't resulted in much due to the limit she had that morning before prepping the flower shop, but Samantha had scrounged up a cute white t-shirt with a red heart design on the waist side, some simple jean capri's, tennis shoes, and a red hoodie jacket. It was basically valentine street clothes; dressed for the holiday but made for comfort.

Just the way she liked it. It made it easier to move around the store instead of getting caught on some lone branch or rose thorn.

"Too bad leg braces don't come in many different colors." Samantha muttered to herself, grabbing another bouquet of requested flowers and handing it to the necessary customer. Taking the payment and smiling as best as she could, Samantha moved on to the next customer in line and focused her attention with laser precision on moving the lines forward. Working as fast as her small body could weighed by a leg brace and the cramped room of the flower shop filled with husbands, boyfriends, wives, and girlfriends scraping for their loved one's gifts, Samantha felt like lightning had struck her at the pace she was going. Moving back and forth to counters and exchanging cash by the seconds to customers, Samantha had to say so herself that she had to be beating some personal record at this point.

Not that there was much of a record to contend to. It still had only been almost a month since moving to France. But that didn't seem to stop the attention their small flower shop was getting in the neighborhood.

"Samantha, how's it going up there?" The voice of her mother called, making the brunette turn back tot he doorway behind her, her mother's figure obscured by some potted plants kept in their home.

"I'm taking care of the last customer, mom." Samantha called, shifting her gaze to an older gentleman and handing him his bunch of red and white roses. "Please have a wonderful day, sir. Happy Valentine's day." Bowing respectfully as the customer made his way out, Samantha sighed with relief to catch her breath and wiped her forehead with a small cloth resting in her hoodie's pocket. "And that's it. I think we can take a breath, mom."

"Oh, that's great! Thank you for all your help, honey." The older brunette walking out of the doorway with a relieved smile on her face, Samantha's mother carried a oddly large bag on her shoulder, keeping her other secured beneath it. "I know you wanted to go around the city and see how Paris celebrates. I'm sorry you had to hold off your plans."

"It's fine, mom. We both knew this holiday was going to need both of us on deck. I'm happy to help." Samantha reassured her mother with a smile, putting her cloth back in her pocket. "The faster we are, the more happy customers are. And that just means more will come back again."

Chuckling at the response, Samantha felt her mother ruffle her hair. "How did I get such a responsible daughter?" Smiling, her mother huffed and pulled the bag she'd been carrying closer to her. "I'll be going out to run the deliveries we've gotten so far. Samantha, if you could, close up the shop for now and restock the flowers? We don't want the shop overrun again without everything put back together or you'll be going back and forth all day."

"I'm on it. I'll hold down the fort until you get back." Samantha replied cheerfully, walking slowly to the front door. Opening it wide to help her mother walk out the door, Samantha squeaked at feeling a soft kiss pressed on her cheek by her mother and waved goodbye to the older brunette. Sighing a bit in relief that the crowds had disappeared for a time, Samantha headed back inside of _Belle Fleur_ and closed the door behind her, locking it with the key. Grabbing the store sign and turning it to show passerby they were closed, the brunette groaned tiredly and rested her back on the door for support. "Phew. Glad all of that is over."

Leaning a bit to turn her head back and forth around the room, the cautious nature of Samantha momentarily ensnared her senses until she could tell the coast was completely clear.

"Ahiruu, you can come out now." Samantha called out loudly, sliding to the floor and taking a seat on the wooden flooring of the flower shop.

The sound of ruffling feathers making their way towards her, the tiny form of what appeared to be a baby duck flew in the small flower shop towards the brunette. Yellow cream colored feathers covering their body and beak a soft orange, the blue eyed bird flapped their tiny wings towards the teenage florist and let out a happy laugh as they plopped atop Samantha's knee to look up at her.

"I'm glad all those people are gone. It was getting really loud in here." Ahiruu said, smiling up to the brunette.

"You said it. I knew flower shops get crowded on holidays like this, but I bet they haven't experienced a rush like this in Paris. American flower shops got nothing on us." Samantha joked, laughing alongside the tiny duck. "I don't think I've been this tired in my life."

"You did a good job, though. Be proud of what you did, Samantha. You're helping a lot of people make their loved feel special." Ahiruu complimented, flapping their wings to fly up into the air and rest atop Samantha's soft hair like a nest. "I knew you were perfect to be my miraculous holder." Ahiruu exclaimed, huffing their chest with pride and holding their head up high.

"Alright, alright. You're right, Ahiruu." Reaching her hand up to lightly pet Ahiruu on the head, Samantha carefully began to get back up onto her feet. "Enough laying around. Time to get to those chores mom needs done. It's not even lunch time yet and that crowd was huge. We need to get this place spruced up for the noon rush."

"Do you think the store has enough flowers for everyone in Paris?" Ahiruu asked, peeking her head out to look down at Samantha.

Samantha chuckled nervously. "Uhh...all of Paris might be a bit much. Let's just aim for a few blocks, Ahiruu." Stretching her arms out and twisting her body a bit, Samantha rubbed her cheeks a bit and looked at the empty bins needing bouquets and displays in need of cleaning. "Looks like there's a lot more mom needs done than she thought."

"How long do you think this will take?" The swan miraculous asked, looking around at the partially empty flower shop. Now that the miraculous noticed, many of the more popular flowers were scarcely there and leaves and petals were scattered around the floor with droplets of water. Pieces of ribbon laid atop the counter of the stores from decorating bouquets and tiny shards of glass from a few pushy customers had left some pieces of sharp glass in a few corners of the room.

Frowning, Samantha rubbed her neck. "Mom needs this done by the time she gets back. I don't know if I'll be able to at the speed I go."

"I can help, than!" Ahiruu suggested, flying off the brunette's head to appear beside her and smile brightly to her. "After all, us swans are embodiments of beauty. With our combined strength we should be able to make this place look like a garden of eden!"

Feeling her lips widen into a pleased smile, Samantha nodded and pointed a finger to Ahiruu. "Thanks, Ahiruu. Let's work to make this place look amazing."

"Yeah!" Ahiruu cheered, flying off of Samantha's head and raising a feather wing to Samantha.

With miraculous wielded and miraculous lightly high-fiving, the two began their work to spruce up the tiny storefront of _Belle Fleur_.

* * *

And so _Belle Fleur_ began it's magical transformation.

Behind small drapes and store closed signs, a young florist and magic swan chick started a whirlwind of preps unlike anything most would see. Despite time being of the essence and only four...or rather two pairs of hands and two pairs of wings at their disposal, the journey to making the Fujisaki-Tanet's store into a prime flower shop for the rest of Paris to explore and peruse turned out to not only to be a calming experience, but also a fun one.

Samantha's sweeping of the floors cleared the boards of any dangerous grass and dirt fallen on the ground, while Ahiruu dusted the fallen flower petals on the countertops of potted plants and occasionally jump into a small flower petal pile of their own creation.

While Samantha watered flowers to keep them relaxed and refreshed, Ahiruu would place tiny flowers into small bouquets for the human to wrap together.

Decorating had become the swan chicks favorite activity as it delved into her love of creativity and decoration. While Samantha was better at designing and dance, Ahiruu's sense of color and beauty helped to create flower arrangements tied with lovely ribbons and decorated by cute, paper crafts.

As the clock ticked away and the preparations started to slowly come to an end, the store was looking better and better with each chore concluded and checked off. It was only when Ahiruu pushed a tiny wet rag along a wooden countertop near the windows did the swan chick sigh and plop down on her feathery bottom.

Wiping what felt like sweat down it's head, Ahiruu cheered. "I'm all done with the counters. I don't think there's anything else left to clean."

"That's fantastic. Thanks for the help Ahiruu. I couldn't have gotten the store done without you." Samantha spoke from the store' cashier's desk, looking away from a small activity she was doing at the counter to make eye contact with the chick from a few feet away. "It looks far better than it did an hour ago."

And it truly did if Samantha could say so herself.

The glass that had been a hazard was now brushed out of the floorboards and put in the trash for safe walking. Dead flower petals fallen from some of the flowers were instead used as a helpful fertilizer for the newer flowers taken out for display and sale for the next rush. Even the dirt that had somehow gotten on the windows and stain glass of the shop ha been cleaned by the helpful reach of Ahiruu. The grime gone, the sunlight from outside shined a kaleidoscope of color in the room, washing the small shop with colors that brought even more beauty to the flowers than before.

"Mom will love how the place looks." Samantha added, eyes shifting down to the craft she was working on.

"Of course. Anything I help with becomes a masterpiece." Ahiruu proclaimed, floating off the counter and heading to Samantha's side. "What are you making over there?"

"A flower crown or two." Samantha answered, smiling a bit as she showed the swan spirit a long wreath of pure white flowers, their vines neatly tied together with careful precision. "I'm making them out of the flowers that have lost some of their petals. People tend to not buy them since they look a bit misshapen and I don't want to throw them away."

"That's so sad. They look just fine to me." Ahiruu spoke, floating closer to the flowers and taking a small sniff of them.

"I know, right? Every flower should have a chance to look beautiful." Shrugging her shoulders, Samantha put the wreath down and moved her hands to working on what seemed to be another similar flower arrangement. Tying the last knot, Samantha hummed in satisfaction and looked over to her miraculous partner. "Ahiruu, does this look okay?" Samantha asked, opening her hands to reveal an extremely tinier version of the flower crown she'd been working on.

Winnings clapping together in approval, the small swan miraculous floated to look at the crown in closer inspection. "It's magnificent, Samantha. You've outdone yourself with this. But why such a small crown?"

"It's for you, obviously. It's a thank you for helping me. So hold still." Watching Ahiruu floated still with a smile, Samantha's carefully placed the tiny flower crown on her partner's head. Fitting perfectly like a true tiara, Ahiruu floated up towards a tiny compact mirror Samantha left on the counter and took in her reflected image.

"Ah, I look amazing! Like a true swan princess." Ahiruu gushed, cheeks reddening with glee at her new accessory. Zipping up to Samantha's face, the small swan miraculous wrapped around what little of Samantha's cheek she could with her wings. "I love it! Thank you so much, Samantha."

Chuckling, the brunette rested a hand on the miraculous's back. "No, thank you Ahiruu. I owe you a lot. This was the least I could-Ahh! Ahiruu, hide!"

Before the swan miraculous could even hear the rest of the heartfelt words her partner was going to say, she felt herself get snatched by the brunette and pulled beneath the space behind the counter, the two keeping hidden from...something.

"W-What's going on!? Is there an Akuma? Is it Hawkmoth!? Or another one of his goons?" The swan squeaked, trying to pry herself out of the teen's grip.

"S-Stop struggling. You need to stay hidden." Samantha hushed Ahiruu, letting go of the miraculous and placing a finger close to her mouth to signal being quiet. Crawling on her knees and carefully pulling herself up towards the edge of the counter, Samantha peaked her head from her hiding place and stared towards the front of the store towards the subject in question that had been causing the sudden fuss. A subject she couldn't forget for a million years.

Fashionable clothes out of magazines. Golden blond hair that swept gracefully in the wind. Green eyes that were so calming you could mistake them for the most breathtaking of carnations.

It could only be the one and only Adrien Agreste.

And somehow...it was! And he was looking through the window of her store!? Why!? How!?

Okay, maybe the how was pretty obvious since he was looking right through the window, but that wasn't the most important question. All that mattered at the moment was that Adrien Agreste was just a couple feet away from her, almost seeing her look kind of like a slob more so than usual, and it was just...her!

Her thoughts were going so haywire that the brunette nearly didn't see Adrien look her way in time, but quickly noticed and hid back behind the counter. Waiting a few more seconds to peek again, Samantha moved her head from the side of the counter and sighed in relief when she saw the handsome boy no longer in the store window front.

"Oh, thank goodness. He almost saw me." Samantha muttered thankfully.

"Ahem," Ahiruu coughed, causing Samantha to turn and look at a particularly pouty swan miraculous. "You said we were hiding because of me. Why'd you duck back here?"

"B-Because," Samantha sputtered out, trying to get a grip on her words. Suddenly feeling interrogated, Samantha shifted her eyes back and forth. "A-Adrien was looking through the window."

"You mean that boy from your class?" Ahiruu asked, tilting their head slightly at their owner's strange demeanor. "Why hide from him? I thought he was nice."

"H-He is!" Samantha quickly agreed, nodding vigorously as she picked herself up front he wooden floor. "He's really nice, and kind, and he's really cool and knows how to make friends with people so easily." Unable to hold in a wistful sigh, Samantha felt her cheeks warm up a bit. "He's the complete opposite of someone like me."

Following the miraculous wielder and floating onto the store's front desk, Ahiruu still looked confused regardless of Samantha's explanation. "If he's so great, why did you hide from him? He might have been looking for you!"

The brunette felt like she'd been shocked by lightning from those words alone.

"M-Me? N-No, Adrien wouldn't be looking for someone like me. It's Valentine's Day. He probably has something more important to do with his friends or family."

"Or," Ahiruu suggested with a shrug. "Maybe he was looking for a flower shop that was open? Like you said it is Valentine's Day. He might need some help from some nice florist."

"Ahiruu don't joke about..."

Her words trying to form in her mouth but beginning to die out as her mind began to formulate just how potentially right her miraculous's words could be, Samantha stayed quiet and silence overtook the flower shop.

"Hm?" Noticing how quiet Samantha was, the swan miraculous hopped closer to the human. "Samantha? Are you-"

"Oh my gosh! You're right!" Samantha suddenly screamed, causing Ahiruu to jump in fright and fall back on her butt in surprise. "What if he was looking for flowers? I just turned away a customer! A-Adrien of all people!? I'm such an idiot!"

"Ow! I told you. Go after him before it's too late!" The swan commanded, pointing a feathered wing at the brunette.

"O-Okay!"

Nodding quickly and nearly tripping on her own feet at the how fast she wanted to move despite how slow her legs were, the young florist headed to the entrance of _Belle Fleur_ and hastily opened the door, head turning right and left to scour what streets were close by.

"Oh, please be around here still. Ah!" Brown eyes weaving to the right to stare down the long sidewalk, Samantha smiled with glee at seeing Adrien still walking down the road at a slow pace, not to far still from the store. Now all she had to do was get his attention.

But she couldn't run. At her pace of walking or "kind of running" as she put it, she'd never catch up to the boy. But she had to do something! Adrien might of needed help and she'd unintentionally ignored him. She couldn't sleep knowing she'd done that.

What could she-

"A-ADRIEN!"

Samantha quickly reached a hand up to her mouth and covered it shut by the time she'd realized a scream had echoed in the small neighborhood, and even more so, that it had come from her own mouth. Noticing a few bystanders looking over to her after surely hearing her scream some guy's name at the top of her lungs, Samantha hastily grabbed the hood of her jacket and pulled it over her face, retreating into the comfort and safety of the clothing.

 _Oh, God. What have I done? I look like such an idiot! I don't even know if Adrien-_

"Samantha? Is that you?"

"Huh?"

Hearing someone call her name, Samantha's grip on her hood loosened as little a she turned her head upwards to see who'd called her. Seeing a small framed figure in front of her covered by a well designed black t-shirt, Samantha's eyes trailed up more until black was replaced with the tanned color of skin, until finally stopping on the face of...

"A-Adrien!" Samantha gasped loudly, taking a step back with her poor foot, nearly toppling over from the friction from her brace with the sidewalk.

"Wow, careful!" Adrien spoke, reaching a hand out to grab Samantha's a pull her back up for balance. Shining the usual friendly smile of his, Adrien chuckled a little at the hooded girl. "We don't want your foot getting worse."

"Y-Yeah..." Samantha replied back, though her voice was barely but a whisper as it trailed off into the wind and her focus was stuck on the boy standing in front of her.

"You okay?" Adrien asked, noticing Samantha had gotten a bit quiet.

"What?" Samantha asked quietly, almost completely ignoring Adrien's question. It was only hen she noticed him staring at her with a worried expression that the brunette finally snapped out of her stupor and gasped, shaking her head and nodding. "Uh...Y-Yeah! I'm fine! My foots fine, I'm fine, your fff..." Thankfully able to hold herself back from saying something extremely embarrassing, Samantha clamped her left hand over her mouth again to stop herself from talking and realized she was still holding hands with Adrien. Taking her right hand from him and letting her hands drop to her sides, the hooded brunette nodded and turned her head down to hide her face from Adrien with the help of her hood. "But...yeah. I'm good. Great, even."

"Great!" Adrien answered, a small hint of blush on his cheeks at also now realizing he'd been holding Samantha's hand longer than he intended. Coughing a bit to clear his throat and find his voice, the blonde sheepishly smiled. "Anyways, I'm glad you saw me. I tried to go to your family's flower shop, but the sign said you were closed."

Embarrassment pushed aside at the reminder of the real reason she'd seen Adrien come by, Samantha looked back up to her classmate. "Oh, right. Yeah. I didn't see you until you just left, so I wanted to catch up to you. Did you need some flowers?"

"Oh, it's okay," Adrien spoke calmly, waving his hand to dissuade any ideas Samantha had despite looking disappointed at hearing the news. "You guys are closed right? I don't want to give you any more extra work on Valentine's Day of all times."

"What?" Samantha asked, slight shock registering on her face. "N-No, it's alright. I just closed to clean up and restock. I'm opening up again in another hour or so when my mother comes back, but if you'd like...you could come in." Samantha suggested, moving by the doorway to give Adrien space to walk inside.

"Really? You'd let me have the store to myself?" Adrien asked hopefully, his smile only growing brighter at the offer Samantha gave him.

Feeling her cheeks redden, Samantha stared at the ground and nodded. "O-Of course. You're a...friend after all. And _Belle Fleur_ is always open for friends."

Okay, that wasn't actually a rule or some kind of motto their store had, but Samantha just couldn't turn Adrien away. Not after missing him earlier and seeing how disappointed he looked about not being able to come in.

Plus...she'd get some alone time with Adrien. She was usually so quiet when in the same class. Maybe this would be an opportunity to try and get closer? At least on a talking level.

It was the cheerful laugh of Adrien that made Samantha's heart jump and look up to Adrien, the blonde smiling and reaching to pat her shoulder. "Thanks, Sam. You're the best."

Feeling like her throat had just closed up on her and what little reply she had coming out as a choked gasp, Samantha felt her cheeks now redden severely as she could do nothing but just nod silently. A shaking hand stretched out to the shop inside, Samantha motioned Adrien to step in.

"C-Come in." She desperately choked out.

Nodding and going into the store ahead of her, Samantha took the opportunity to take a large gasp of breath and clutch the doorknob with all the exploding strength flowing in her that she could. Her hands slightly shaking a bit from the close contact she still felt linger on her shoulder, Samantha sighed and walked inside _Belle Fleur_ feeling far more nervous than she had all day. Her gaze quickly moving back tot he front desk at remembering Ahiruu was still in the store, the brunette was relieved to see the swan miraculous missing. They must have hidden themselves away after she rushed out the door.

That meant it really was just her...and _Adrien_.

"S-So, is there something particular you're interested in today?" Samantha asked quietly, waiting for her voice to better return as she wiped the sweat coming from her hands onto her apron.

Green eyes dashing left and right at every shelf and display the store had, Adrien didn't say much at first, far too engrossed at the various rainbow of colors coming from the flowers alone. Seeing his face brighten up at each flower he looked closer at, the boy pet the soft petals of a nearby potted lily and turned back to look at Samantha.

"Uhh...Not really. I've just been searching for a flower shop that wasn't crowded all day. I really needed to get some flowers, but it seems like all of Paris had the same idea." Adrien joked with a smile.

A tiny smile returned to her classmate, Samantha shrugged. "It tends to get pretty busy on these holidays. You should have seen the place this morning. It was a madhouse." Heading further into the shop and grabbing a small water an on the shelf, Samantha carefully watered some sunflowers next to her and hummed softly. "Is there a particular reason you're getting the flowers?" Feeling her lips smack shut at her question, Samantha wasn't sure if she should ask her next. However, the allure of it was too much to handle and she couldn't stop herself from prying. Curse her curiosity. "Is it for...someone special?"

"Yeah. Most special lady in my life." Adrien spoke, though his voice sounded far more grounded and serious than how he'd spoken earlier. Taking his eyes away from the lily he'd been staring at, the blonde let his emerald green eyes settle on some taller orange flowers flared with purple.

"Oh," Feeling her nervousness and excitement dwindle down at hearing such a serious answer from Adrien, Samantha put the watering can down and started fidgeting with her hands. "She sounds like something. I'll try my best to help in...any way I can."

"Thanks, Samantha." Adrien said kindly, turning away from the flowers to look at the brunette. "It means a lot."

"No problem. What are friends for?" She asked thoughtfully, walking further into the store towards where Adrien was enjoying the various flora on display. "Do you think she'd be happy with a bouquet? She can keep it in a nice vase in her room. Unless she's more of a one flower kind of girl."

"Nah, I think a bouquet sounds great." Adrien agreed, however his expression became somewhat unreadable. "Do you guys have anything special?"

"Special?" Samantha asked, not sure what Adrien was asking.

"It's just...I don't want to give her anything boring like roses. Everybody does that. I want to give her something special and unique that she won't see anywhere else." Adrien admitted.

Gazing at the boy beside her, Samantha felt her eyes trail down the features of her fellow classmate. His face slightly downcast, Samantha couldn't help but reach out and pat the boy's shoulder the same way he'd done to her. "Hey, don't worry. I can make one thing special. How does a custom bouquet sound?"

Feeling the friendly pat on his shoulder, Adrien stared back at Samantha with a surprised look in his eyes. "You can do that?"

"Of course. It's rare we get requests like that and my mom is usually the one who does them, but I can handle it." Samantha said confidently, smiling to the blonde as she headed to the various displays of single flowers that sat row after row in the store. "To make it more special, you can tell me about the girl and I can make a bouquet with flowers that match her personality."

"Really? That sounds awesome! Let's do that." Adrien excitedly agreed, walking to the displays and scanning over the countless colors and designs each flower had. "Okay, well she's really kind. Full of energy and life all the time. Always helps others and really mature."

Hearing Adrien's description and looking through the flowers at her disposal, Samantha hummed a soft tune while searching through her knowledge of flower meanings and began picking out pieces one by one. Her arms beginning to get a bit full at the flowers she'd grabbed, Samantha headed towards the front desk and placed the chosen flowers on the top.

"Adrien, could you get me some baby's breath and some of those white flowers on your right? The ones that look like bells?" Samantha asked, pulling out some tissue paper and plastic wrapping from the rolls racked behind the counter.

Eyes trailing along the small display buckets holding flower after flower, Adrien pointed out each tiny sign signifying each flower until finding baby's breath with luck. Picking a few, the blonde looked at all the flowers for the exact ones that looked the most like bells, until finding the white bell-like flora and taking a few out as well.

"These are it, right?" Adrien asked as he walked up to Samantha putting something together.

Looking away from her work, Samantha couldn't help but smile a little at the unsure look on Adrien's face. Nodding, she took the flowers from him. "You got it right. Maybe you should try becoming a florist."

"I think I'll leave that to the professionals." Adrien playfully joked, winking to the brunette who turned to look back at her work. Turning his own attention to the various pieces Samantha had laid out, Adrien rose a brow. "So, what did you pick out?"

Preparing the wrapping, Samantha carefully grabbed each flower she'd chosen by their stem and began to bundle them together. "Flowers that match your description. You said that this girl is full of energy, right?"

"Yeah. Lots from what I know about her." Adrien agreed, seeing Samantha grab a three of the same yellow flowers and place them into the plastic wrapping.

"Well, I chose chrysanthemum. Yellow to be specific. They symbolize optimism and joy, so they match really well. I would have gone for sunflowers, but they're a bit too big for bouquets." Samantha explained, showing Adrien the flower before grabbing another. "For how kind she is I chose white lilies. They're popular, but can exemplify the meaning of sweetness of heart." Placing the large flowers at the center, Samantha arranged the carnations to surround the lilies and began putting a few pieces of the bell shaped flowers Adrien had grabbed into the bouquet. Soon enough the bouquet was beginning to grow in shape; colors of white, yellow, and dashes of pink from the lilies creating a colorful display.

"So what are these flowers? The ones that look like bells?" Adrien asked, picking up a small stem of them and inspecting the tiny bell shaped flowers.

"They're called lilies of the valley. They're kind of hard to get since they don't natively grow here, so we don't get a lot in the store. We were in luck they were here today though." Carefully putting the flowers together in a bundle, Samantha reached her hand out to take the bell flowers from her classmate. Her fingers unintentionally flinching at the close contact the two almost had to touching hands, Samantha took the flowers Adrien handed her and went back to focusing on her work. "They uhh...represent purity. Plus they're pretty popular with women. They're used a lot in ceremonies."

"Like weddings and stuff?" Adrien asked, finger lightly flicking a tiny bell flower and smiling at it calmly.

Warmth rushed to Samantha's cheeks at the "w" word being dropped by Adrien. It was very clear he hadn't meant anything by saying it, but for a girl her age having a "sort of maybe" crush on a guy talking about marriage, let's just say she felt like she wanted to very nonchalantly explode.

"Y-Yeah, most of the time. They look nice for ceremonies like weddings. I just think they look cute, to be honest." The florist admitted, fingers slightly frozen in their work until she screamed mentally for them to move again. Thankfully they had, and soon enough Samantha was grabbing the last of the flowers, the baby's breath, and was readying to put the last of the bouquet together.

However before she started placing them, Samantha fingera strangely froze as an unwanted thought crossed her mind. Eyes flickering between the bouquet and Adrien, Samantha tried to keep her mouth closed from screaming at what was going on.

Samantha couldn't believe this was happening. It was Valentine's Day! One of the most super romantic and loving of holidays. She'd ended up skipping school to help her mother and after dealing with a wave of customers all morning she'd been resigned to resting all day until she was needed again.

But now here she was with the one boy in her class she was having strange mixed feelings for. He was standing right in front of her! On Valentine's Day! And she was making a bouquet for him! For...

Another girl.

Her eyes felt like they'd dimmed a bit in light, and her gaze started to falter.

"Hey, Adrien?"

The boy in question looked over to Samantha, her gaze wavering between the bouquet she was making to the tiny flowers in her hand. "Hm? What's up?"

"I'm almost done. But I just wanted to be sure. The girl you're giving this bouquet to...is she really important to you?" Samantha asked hesitantly, her voice quiet as brown eyes shifted to look away from Adrien's green.

Why was she suddenly asking him this question? Was it any of her business to even ask such a thing? It wasn't like she was just starting up a fun conversation. It was a direct, personal question to a guy she sort of...she couldn't be sure what to call it. She thought he was nice and wanted him to really like her, but there were times where she wanted to be the only one beside him. There were times she became a quiet, stiff, mess that could do nothing but retreat into her hoodie like a scared turtle and felt like the spotlight of a stage shone right on top of her when he looked at her or tried to speak with her.

It was a scary feeling, but it also made her feel excited. Like she had changed into Swan Blanc and could fly in the air. So light that it felt like there was nothing wrong with her leg.

Was...this love she was describing?

"She's," Adrien spoke, making Samantha look up to the blonde. Strangely enough, his own face mirrored her own in some ways. His usually shimmering green eyes had become a bit less bright as they drifted to the wood floor, one hand placed nervously in his pocket while the other rubbed a stuff neck. "Really important to me. I don't know what I'd do if someone like her was never in my life."

Samantha pursed her lips at the answer, a tight feeling wrapping around her chest that almost made her clutch at her shirt. Holding back the feeling, Samantha swallowed down a strange lump that had appeared in her throat and pulled out a rehearsed smile that she learned from her mother when running the shop. Pushing her eyes to look only at the bouquet in her hands, Samantha nodded and placed the baby's breath in to finish the present off.

"Okay. I just wanted to make sure."

Tying the bouquet with the flourish of a red ribbon and making sure everything was neatly tied together, Samantha looked back to Adrien and tried her best to brighten her smile a bit more, handing the bouquet to the boy. "Here you go. It's all yours."

His fallen expression disappearing for a moment at seeing Samantha's smile, Adrien looked between her and the flowers in her hands until he reached out and grabbed the bouquet, unintentionally grazing his hands with Samantha's with skin to skin contact.

Both feeling the sudden contact, both pulled their hands close at a much faster rate, both somewhat turning away from the other with a light blush on each other's cheeks.

"S-Sorry." Adrien apologized.

"I-It's okay. It was an accident." Samantha answered, fingers nervously playing with the end of her t-shirt until slowly turning back to look back to Adrien. Despite the awkward situation created front the simple hand contact and the completion of the bouquet, the young florist could see a slight hesitation in Adrien's eyes that lingered through the sea of color that surrounded him in the shop.

Had her question soured his mood?

 _Good job, Samantha. You asked something you shouldn't have._

"I...didn't ask something personal, did I?" Samantha questioned, eyes flickering from her messy work desk to Adrien.

"What?" Adrien asked, realizing his classmate had saw a shift in his mood. Frowning a little more at the observation, Adrien chuckled and shook his head. "No, it's nothing. Just had my mind on something." His face still looking somewhat sad, Adrien did his best to pull out his usual winning smile he'd show to the cameras to change Samantha's mind. "Anyways, thanks for the flowers. How much do I owe you for this?"

"What?" Samantha asked, mind somewhat blanking out on her at hearing the question on price. Now that she had thought about it, how was she going to add all the numbers together for each piece and create a proper amount for the work she'd done? "I don't know, actually. I never thought much about price."

"Well, I'll pay whatever it is. You helped me a lot today, Samantha. So just ask and I'll be glad to give it." Adrien spoke adamantly, nodding to show how serious he was.

The brunette felt herself nearly gasp a laugh out at Adrien's behavior and lightly covered her mouth with her fingertips. Her mood somewhat lifted at Adrien's admission, Samantha shook her head. "No, it's okay. It's on the house."

"What? You can't be serious." Adrien said, eyes widening a little. "No way. This is too nice. I can't just take it for free."

"You're not just taking it. It's...let's call it a present." Samantha suggested with a shrug of her shoulders. "I helped make it after all. You can tell the girl it's from the both of us. So there's no need to pay for a present." Samantha joked.

Shoulders sagging at the wording Samantha made to reiterate her free gift, Adrien felt his mood lift and smiled gratefully to Samantha. "You know, you're really something Samantha."

The florist felt her cheeks warm up. "I'm not anything special. Really, I'm not. I just wanted to help."

"You did. Helped way more than I could have asked for." Adrien said, carefully adjusting the bouquet he'd received in his arms. "If I can't pay, can I least come by again and help out? Just to pay for a little of what I owe?"

"Adrien, you don't have to-"

"But I want to."

Her words cut off by the boy smiling at her, Samantha shook her head. How could she say no to a face like that?

"I'll think about it."

"Great."

The two teens sharing eye contact for what felt like five minutes, Adrien laughed and scratched his head. "Guess I better get out of here. Don't want to waste your time. You've got a store to run."

"And you've got a girl to get to, right?" Samantha suggested, her tone somewhat sad despite the smile on her face.

"Oh, right. Yeah, I do." Adrien said, feeling like he'd had headlights shined at him at the response. His expression somewhat falling, Adrien waved goodbye to Samantha and headed to the entrance door. "Thanks again for the flowers, Samantha."

Passing by row after row of colorful flowers that greeted the blonde with blooming beauty, Adrien reached the entrance door and grabbed he handle, pushing it down to open the door-

"Adrien, wait!"

Then his hand froze and he turned around, eyes widening a bit at the sudden call from Samantha.

The brunette scrambling with something at the front desk and moving her hands at a pace Adrien couldn't be sure he could follow, Samantha grabbed the item she was working on and slowly hobble her way towards Adrien. Making her way to Adrien with slow, wobbly steps thanks to her foot brace, the ex-dancer stepped in front of Adrien and looked down at the floor, looking away from the boy's view.

"Samantha?" Adrien called, noticing the way the girl was looking away from him despite how strongly she'd called out to him just moments go. He wasn't sure what was going on or how he was supposed to respond, but he didn't want to leave. There was...something that wanted him to just stay there and wait for her to speak.

Fingers nervously holding her possession, Samantha took a quick breath and hurridly looked up to Adrien, making her hood haphazardly fall off her head to show the messy unruliness of her hair and hesitant look on her face to Adrien. Despite the hood falling, the girl still looked at the blonde straight in the eye.

"H-Here," Samantha quietly spoke, urging her suddenly heavy hands to move up and show her work to Adrien. "This is for you."

Hearing her quietly urge him to take something, Adrien's eyes fell to a beautifully crafted ring of flowers, the absence of color strangely purifying and healing to look at. Intricately tied by the stems, Samantha showed the work to Adrien before speaking again.

"It's a flower crown. They would have been thrown away, but I wanted to use them for something. I thought maybe...you could take it. They're carnations."

His voice at a loss for any kind of words that could be spoken, Adrien merely stared at the ring of flowers resting in the hands of the brunette. Moments passing as the two did nothing but stare back at one another, Adrien finally snapped out of his surprise and quickly nodded. "O-Of course. It's beautiful, Samantha. Thank you."

Carefully bending down to her level, Samantha blushed at the courteous gesture Adrien did, but nonetheless placed the crown of flowers atop the blonde's head. Neatly wrapping around his head and adding a somewhat calming aura to him, Samantha smiled and made a tiny thumbs up. "It..looks good on you."

"It should. You made it." Adrien complimented, fingers moving to lightly touch the flowers now placed in his hair. Feeling an extra flower int he crown loose, Adrien couldn't help but pull the flower out and stare at the tiny stemmed flower in his hands. Feeling some strange emotion come over him, Adrien reached over to Samantha and, without so much as a warning or much hesitation, placed the flower carefully behind her ear.

Samantha nearly jumped at the contact Adrien made, the movement so swift she'd nearly missed it. Yet, her body froze as Adrien placed the flower in her hair and stepped back to smile to her.

"You look good without that hood always on. You should pull it down more. That way I can see your face more." Adrien said, but nervously shifted his gaze away from the brunette and rubbed his neck after thinking over his words. "Uhh...I mean, you know. So everyone in class can see you."

"O-Okay!" Samantha squeezed out loudly, her heart going a mile a second at the sudden rush of energy and emotions blasting through her. When she saw Adrien begin to leave again, Samantha hastily waved her hand to say goodbye to her classmate. "S-See you tomorrow! In class, I mean!"

"You too. Happy Valentine's Day, Samantha." Adrien replied back, turning to wave back to Samantha with bouquet in hand before closing the shop door behind him. He walked down the sidewalk, only to peek in the window of the shop and wave back to her again, before heading back down the road and disappearing from view.

"Finally! I thought he'd never leave!" Ahiruu exclaimed, the swan chick popping out of a potted plant hanging on the ceiling. Shaking off a coat of dirt covering their feathers, the swan miraculous gazed at the small mess at the front desk before floating down to land atop Samantha's head. "So he has somebody he likes, huh? I'm sorry to hear that Samantha. I know you liked him. Samantha?" Ahiruu called, not hearing any kind of response back.

Waddling atop the brunette's head, the swan chick peeked over Samantha's head to stare down and observe the girl's expression.

Face bright red from the interaction, one hand stayed frozen at her side while the other lightly touched the flower that had been placed in her hair by Adrien. Eyes nervously glued t where the boy had been, Samantha tried to answer Ahiruu in some way, but only let out a strangled gasp of noise as a result.

Everything that had happened before that moment just disappeared. The only thing Samantha Fujisaki-Tanets could seem to remember for most of the day was a sweet voice in her ear, stunning green eyes staring at her, and the sweet smell of carnations.

Taking the carnations that ha been placed in her hair and putting it in front of herself, Samantha smelled the flower's sweet scent before hugging it gently to her chest.

"H-Happy Valentine's Day, Adrien."

Rolling their eyes, Ahiruu shook their head.

"Looks like I lost her."

* * *

Well, it's all done. Thanks to everyone who read it and are enjoying this small story of mine so far. I apologize that this isn't the actual start of the story yet, but I'm busy with college and five classes and I can't sit down and write much yet. Since Valentine's Day had come, I wanted to make a prompt, but couldnt' get it out in time. So instead it's a prelude to Dark Cupid that will continue later on when I get to it, along with being a small hint to the future of the story.

I just hope I can get to Stoneheart soon. We need to see Swan Blanc in action.

P.S. White carnations represent pure love. X3

Until the next chapter, everyone have a good day/night.


	3. Stoneheart Pt 1

So...yay? Chapter 2? After all these years!

Well, technically a year.

Man it has been a long time. I am really sorry with how long this has taken. I did not mean to go into such a long haitus not just for this, but my other big story that is set in the Young Justice fandom. Schoo became a very big deal for a while and even now its looming over me. I'm hoping everything went well this semester and with some free time on my hands, i decided it was best to finally have a chance to write for myself for a change instead of philosophy papers.

Plus as I watched the new seasons of Miraculous, you can bet your butt I got inspired for writing ideas. Now all I have to do is get through every single episode...

 **GREAT**!

For now this is chapter 2. I really wanted this to be a huge chunk of the origin story, but unfortunately with how long its taken, I don't want to force people to wait even more. Especially with how much I like to write. So for now this is Part 1 of...maybe 4 for the origin story.

But let's be real. This chapter is pretty much the beginnings of SamDrien. And hopefully if I write enough and not lazy, we can get to the real juicy bits and the introduction of Paris' super hero duo; Swan Blanc and Cat Noir!

I really want that to happen already. XD

Anyways, please enjoy. If you can please review. Some feedback or some nice words is helpful to the writing process. :D

* * *

"Did something good happen in the last couple of days, honey?"

Her attention focused on putting together a bouquet of roses at the store's desk, Samantha placed the final flower in place before turning her head to look at her mother; the older woman squirting sprits of water on the flowers she'd just recently put together.

This would be the first day that the store would be "officially" open to the public to walk in, buy flowers and other sorts of things since moving had caused a lot of confusion for their inventory. Now that everything was put together, it was time to, as her mother said, "strut their stuff". Samantha wanted to be sure everything was absolutely perfect.

After all, she wasn't going to be in the store much nowadays.

Maybe that was why she hadn't heard her mother's question.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Samantha asked, the brunette grabbing the small bouquet and placing it in the group of roses on the counter.

"I just noticed you've been... _objecting_ a little less about going out into Paris," Her mother spoke, brown eyes looking back to her with a glimmer of what appeared to be hope. "It isn't anything to worry about. Just a mother being curious that's all."

Staring back at her mother, Samantha didn't reply back at first; instead turning back to the bouquet she had finished creating. Softly rubbing one of the petals between her fingers to feel the silky softness of the flora, Samantha hummed thoughtfully.

Had she? Samantha wasn't sure herself if she was being honest. It was hard to know yourself if you started suddenly acting different around others. There was no way she could tell by just looking in the mirror or hear herself talk.

She knew that she had done a few more things outside since moving to their new home. Eating some new foods at restraunts with her mom, going to some museums and even taking a trip to the Eiffel Tower and just staring at it for a good few minutes.

On the ground though. She couldn't deal with heights very well.

 _Maybe that talk with Mr. Fu helped more than I thought?_ Samantha thought, gazing at a small window that peaked into the world beyond the flower shop _._

The time spent with Mr. Fu had stay etched in her memory for the longest time. Samantha couldn't recall the last time she spoke with someone in such little a time, but remembered words so clearly like she'd heard them just minutes ago.

Their meeting could have gone in so many different ways, but for her it turned into an unexpected rescue of Mr. Fu and delivery of a bonsai tree nearly broken by her impulsive actions. He was a kind old man that was patient and complimented hard work, as well as dishing out some very helpful advice when needed. Samantha had learned much of this when the two had shared tea at his home after her delivery; and it was that event that triggered a discussion concerning her.

Her newest venture as a new resident of Paris. Confronting a city in which art and culture dominated every street and building. Where she was to grow and learn without two of the most important and influential things in her life.

Her father and ballet.

One was obviously more dominating in her life than the other and hurt her with a pain that resonated within her and her mother. At times they both thought things would never be the same ever again with someone so integral to their lives gone. But, thankfully with hard work they'd rebuilt their lives over again. It may have been in a completely different country and there would always be an empty seat at the table, but as long as the two had each other Samantha knew her mother and her would be okay. Her father would always continue to live on in her heart.

The other was a different story.

Ballet had been something like a calling for the brunette. She had never been the most graceful or social of butterflies as other girls when she was young. Alone most of the time and trying to find a hobby, it was her mother, once a renowned ballet dancer herself, who brought her into the world of dance. It seemed that ballet ran in the blood because as soon as Samantha put on shoes she became something else on stage. She was graceful, confident, energetic and determined. She slowly became more social and made friends with other dancers. Training and a love for the art made her into the ballet dancer she was and she couldn't imagine ever wanting to stop. It seemed almost silly that she hadn't thought of trying it sooner.

It it felt like it was a part of her.

A part of her that had now been cut and gutted out of her. A part of her that she could never get back, taken so quickly along with her ability to just walk normally.

Despite her last name Fujisaki-Tanets meaning " _flower of danc_ e", she was more of a wilting flower after the accident. Her confidence had been shot, people who adored her dancing forgot about her and her only lifeline that made her feel unique was now too far for her to reach. For just as high as she flew, she feel back down to the Earth just as quickly.

She was back to being nothing and it hurt her for the longest of times. It was what made living in Paris so difficult; a problem she mentioned to Mr. Fu during their conversation. To live in a place where all around her art cried out to be enjoyed and expressed, she could do nothing but be a spectator rather than be on the stage like she used to. How hard it felt to just move on and keep smiling despite feeling like a wreck inside. Like she was lying to herself even though she was trying so hard to be the good girl she was for her mother.

Samantha knew better than to blame a city of all things to make her feel the way she did. That was on her, not Paris. Those were feelings she had to figure out on her own and try to accept. Healing like the way she had concerning her father would take a bit more time and effort, but eventually she would find peace with it all.

For now, just being able to talk about her thoughts and doubts with someone had been such a comfort. Mr. Fu had helped her so much by simply listening and talking just a bit with her. She'd gotten the best sleep she had in a long time; plus on some occasions her body felt a bit lighter than it used to. Stress that had weighed down on her was slowly disappearing and the petite brunette was beginning to think there might be some upside to Paris if she just looked a bit more like Mr. Fu had said.

Maybe one day Paris would feel like home. Somewhere where she could feel safe and accepted.

"One day." She muttered softly, her attention beginning to get sucked in by the red of the rose petal resting in between her fingertips.

"What was that, honey?" Samantha's mother called, walking over to her daughter to hear her better.

Jumping back into her skin and pulling away from the flower, Samantha stared back at her mother and nervously smiled, hoping to hide the embarrassment of getting caught staring out into space. "Uhh...I was just saying I decided one day to try a change of pace, I guess. Since we're staying in Paris and all."

"If you say so, dear. Oh! Samantha, the time." Her mother called, pointing up to the clock resting on the wall with hands pointing to the seven and nine. "It's almost eight o' clock. You're going to be late."

"What!?" Samantha screamed, eyes darting to the same clock and scanning every inch of it to see if something would change, or perhaps find some sort of mistake that would magically appear if she looked hard enough.

Sadly, no such mistake appeared. Only the ticking of the clock and the big hand moving an inch closer to the ten.

"I-I'm going!" The brunette screamed, rushing with left foot forward to leave the room, only to wobble and nearly trip at her right foot heavily falling onto the floor thanks to her brace. Almost toppling over and grabbing the counter nearby to save herself, Samatha gasped a sigh of relief before slowing, but still with a bit haste, power walked through the room to her things upstairs.

"Don't run, honey. I'd rather not have to call the school and say you were late from tripping down the stairs." Samantha's mother joked, grabbing her cup of coffee left by the register and taking an amused sip.

"Haha." The dry laughter of her daughter roared from her room, accompanied by the burst of a bedroom door slamming against the wall and a tuft of brunette hair rushing down the stairs. Reaching the first floor and moving to grab a small lunch prepared by her mother, Samantha turned back to her mother and wrapped her arms around the older woman. "I'm off. I'll try to come home as soon as I can."

"Oh, don't worry about me, honey." Samantha's mother said, seeing her daughter pull away from the hug to look up at her. Resting a hand atop the brunette's head, Samantha watched her mother smile. "We live close by. Just enjoy your day. Make some friends. I can take care of the store on my own."

Smiling up to the older woman, Samantha gave an assuring nod her mother before turning around and heading out the door.

"I'll call if anything comes up!"

* * *

"Nathalie, are you sure there isn't some way I can go to school? Father doesn't have to know at all."

This had to be the one hundredth time Adrien Greste was pushing to go to school to Natalie. Or at the very least, the one hundredth and first. After how many times he'd asked and begged to give him a small chance to just go to school like a normal kid, he wouldn't be surprised if the number wasn't any larger.

But no matter how many times he was shot down, Adrien knew he couldn't just give up. This was too important to him to just dismiss. This wasn't piano practice, a boring photo shoot, or magazine signing.

"This is my life I'm talking about here," Adrien conveyed, sincerity in his voice as he tried too persuade the business woman who sat across from him in the back of his family's limousine. "Doesn't that mean anything to you? Or father?"

"Your Father is looking out for your well being, Adrien. Home schooling isn't something to be ashamed of. It's more for your protection rather than some kind of punishment. You're a well known model now. Placing you in public school would only make you a center of attention and create distractions in your learning curriculum." Nathalie, Adrien's father's assistant spoke, adjusting her glasses as she sat beside the boy, her other hand settled on a clipboard on her lap.

"But I'm like a prisoner in my own house. I know school and my safety is important and all, but what about making friends? Being around people my age? I can't exactly have conversations with my couch all day." The boy argued, turning to face the car window and stare out at the passing colors of Paris on their way back home.

"I understand your concerns, Adrien, but what your father says goes. He just wants to give you the best the world has to offer for you. He's thinking about your well being greatly. You understand, don't you?" Nathalie asked, hoping her words would somehow calm the teenager down and turn back to face her.

Adrien however made no such turn to look back at Nathalie. Instead he sighed as he felt his lips turn downwards into a frown, his own sad reflection staring straight back at him.

These conversations always seemed to go back and forth like this.

He wanted to go to public school and make some friends. Have some freedom from his boring schedules and modeling.

His father seemingly always wanted the opposite. Work was more important. The middle class school institution was "inferior" for someone like the sole son of the Agreste family. There was no need to waste his time slowing down his education at the rate home schooling was giving him when modeling and building a career and name for himself took precedence.

After all, wasn't status the most important thing in a place like Paris?

"No," Adrien muttered quietly. "I don't."

Staring out the window, Adrien let the world of Paris pass by his view as the car drove down the streets of the artistic cityscape. Deciding to resign his fate yet again to another boring day of photo shoots and interviews, the blonde was about to turn away from the view of freedom in front of him and go back to being submerged in a day of scheduled events, but just as he was about look away as the car slowed at a light, something caught Adrien's eye.

Or rather someone.

It was a girl looking around his age. Crouched on the ground and holding their leg, they seemed to be struggling to get back to their feet, only to lean back down to hold what appeared to be an injured leg. Eyes flickering around the sidewalk to see if somebody was coming to the stranger's aid, Adrien continued to frown at seeing nobody around the girl.

With just a few seconds to look at the person seemingly in pain, the teen felt a twinge of anxiety settle into his stomach as the car began to move once more as the light changed. Feeling the vehicle begin to catch up in speed and the worry in his chest grow with each second passing, Adrien turned and leaned forward to the window between the back seat and the driver.

"Stop the car." The blonde ordered, only to just as quickly open the passenger door next to him and step out of the unmoving car.

"Adrien? Where are you going?" He could hear Nathalie call out to him from the stopped car. Not making any moves to slow down and explain himself, the blonde rushed over to the sidewalk, careful to avoid any oncoming traffic as he stopped nearby the brunette on the ground.

"Hey, are you alright?" Adrien asked sincerely, standing above the hurt girl with a look of worry on his face.

* * *

Ow. She'd really done it this time.

How could she have been so stupid? Trying to rush to school when she had a bad foot? Trying so hard to look like she could get everywhere on her own.

And now she was kneeling on the ground with a throbbing leg.

"Mom's going to freak out if I call her. But I can't just sit here all day. I'm going to be late on the first day." Samantha muttered, trying to plan out her next plan of action, but only coming up with short ends.

What was she going to-

"Hey, are you alright?"

"Huh?"

Turning her head to the sound of someone apparently calling out to her (at least she hoped so), Samantha felt her gaze settle on a person standing somewhat over her, their form slightly obscured by the light of the sun shining behind them. Squinting her eyes a little as the rays hit her eyes, Samantha let her eyes adjust as the figure came into a better view.

A boy looking around her age, he had striking blonde hair that was as gold as the sun shining behind him and eyes of a light forest green that had to make even the purest of flowers jealous at their color.

The way he stood before her, basked in sunlight and trying to give her a reassuring smile. Samantha felt like she was looking at a sunflower.

Unblemished. Vibrant. Colorful and a source of happiness and brightness in her usually cloudy world.

Who...was he?

Simply staring back at the unknown boy, Samantha's lips parted to say something, but felt her voice get caught in her throat despite trying to respond back. Far too distracted by both his sudden appearance and the dashing looks of this random stranger checking on her, it seemed her silence was enough for the boy to speak up.

"Is something wrong with your leg?" The boy asked, concern evident on his face as his eyes drifted from her confused face to her braced leg she was clutching in pain.

Suddenly, a twinge of worry sparked inside her.

When people noticed her leg brace, they tended to start looking at her with pity. No, she didn't want that. Not again. Not in a new city. Not when it was a boy her age.

She wasn't ready to be made fun of so early in the morning.

"I-It's fine," Samantha hastily replied, surprised she was able to get her voice to work again, and even more surprised she answered so quickly. "This is normal. It'll pass with some time. Really." She answered, looking down to hide her face and recede back into her hood. It was only after she tried to laugh off the situation that the brunette winced in pain, having moved her leg due to her pretend laughter.

 _Yeah. Way to go trying to act strong, Samantha. That was what got you in this situation. Doing it again was sure to make things better._

"Hey, don't push yourself," the boy spoke, crouching down to her level and resting a hand on her shoulder as he saw her wobble a bit. "Take it easy. I don't think that leg is in the mood to move too much." Adrien suggested, pulling out a kind smile to relax the girl beside him.

Blushing a bit at the awkward situation she was in, Samantha looked back at Adrien and felt her cheeks heat up at seeing the boy smile at her, taken aback somewhat at the gesture.

A smile. A real, genuine, friendly smile.

How long had it been since she'd seen something like that from someone her age?

Forever, it felt like.

"O-Okay." Samantha quietly answered back, most of her thought process now thrown out the window as she was too absorbed by the kindness of the blonde stranger before her. "T-Thank you."

"No problem." The boy replied with a chuckle.

"Adrien, what's going on?" A woman's voice called out, making the two teens somewhat startled and break eye contact.

"Nathalie," The boy, or rather Adrien spoke, turning his head to look at a woman in a clean business suit walk over to the two. "She's hurt her leg. Is there any way we can help her?"

Frowning at the situation, Nathalie looked down at Samantha and inspected the girls' wrapped leg. Whatever irritation the woman had now being replaced with genuine concern warping her features, Nathalie bent down to Samantha's level. "Is there someone we can call to help you? Family perhaps? Or do you need a hospital?"

"N-Neither!" Samantha hastily replied, only to feel embarrassed at how loudly she'd replied back. "I...It's just tendinitis. I probably overdid it trying to walk. I don't need a hospital or anything. I'm just trying to get to school."

"To school? Is it far from here?" Nathalie inquired.

"Not really. Maybe a block or so more from here. It's this art school. Françoise Dupont High School?" Samantha repeated, not sure if either of them had even heard of the place.

"Françoise Dupont High School?" The blonde asked back with slight shock. While she didn't know what it was that made the boy so surprised, it was soon enough replaced by a smile and a bit of eagerness in the boys' eyes. "We can give you a ride there!"

"What? Really?" Samantha asked, not sure if she'd heard Adrien right.

"Yeah, it's no problem. We can't just leave you here to sit around waiting for that leg to get better. And this way you won't be late. Right Nathalie?" He asked, looking up to the business woman who was now known as Nathalie for an answer.

Seeing the two teens stare her down and looking at the situation in front of her, Nathalie adjusted her glasses as she gave a knowing nod. "I suppose this wasn't on the agenda, but we can't leave you here. We'll get you to school. You can rest in our car." Getting back up to her feet, Nathalie turned to the car and look over to a larger man standing nearby. "Would you mind helping this young lady to the car?"

"Don't worry. I'll help her." The blonde mystery boy volunteered, already working to help Samantha up by reaching a hand out to her. "Here. Just grab on and I'll lift you up."

"S-Sure." Samantha answered, somewhat confused as she was seemingly being pushed into a odd situation. Regardless, the brunette slowly but surely gave her hand to the blonde, and clasped it somewhat tightly as she felt herself by pulled up off the ground. Taking things slow and careful, the boy slowly but surely lead Samantha to the plush limousine car he and the business woman had come from. Letting her take slow steps inside of the vehicle, Samantha took a seat on the far left hand side of the seats as the boy stepped in after, taking a seat on her right hand side.

"I bet you didn't expect to be riding in a limo to school." The blonde joked, hoping to make small talk with his newfound companion as the car door was shut beside him and their drive resumed.

Feeling the car begin into way down the street and becoming a bit engrossed by the lovely accommodations of her newfound ride, Samantha felt her nerves jump a bit at being addressed by the blonde and reached to tug softly on the ends of her hood that rested over her head. "Y-Yeah. This is the last thing I was expecting on my first day of school," Samantha admitted honestly. "Thank you again for the ride. I uhh...don't know your name though."

"Huh?" The boy spoke, staring at Samantha with confusion written on his face. "You don't know who I am?"

The brunette felt a wave of awkwardness splash over her like a cold rain shower. Had she said something rude?

"A-Am I supposed to?" Samantha asked awkwardly. "I just moved here a while ago from the States. Are you famous?"

Strangely enough the blonde beside her didn't look angry or disappointed in all at hearing her admit her lack of knowledge about him. Instead he looked...relieved?

Watching the blonde relax his shoulders at her confusion, the blonde couldn't help but smile as he shook his head. "It doesn't matter or anything. Actually makes things a lot simpler for me." Reaching a hand out to greet Samantha, the blonde gave a friendly smile. "My name's Adrien Agreste."

Feeling what worries she had melt away at the sunny personality of Adrien, Samantha felt her lips tug into a small smile as she reached out her own hand and grasped it within the blondes'. "I'm Samantha. Samantha Fujisaki-Tanets. It's nice to finally meet each other"

"Likewise," Adrien joked, breaking hand contact with Samantha as he motioned over to the woman sitting across from the two. "This is my assistant, Nathalie. She helps me with all kinds of stuff."

"A pleasure." Nathalie said, giving a slight bow of her head to acknowledge Adrien's introduction of herself.

"L-Likewise." Samantha said, giving a slight bow of her head back, thinking it was the right thing to do. "Thank you again for helping me. I know I probably ruined some plans you had this morning."

"It is no trouble, Miss Fujisaki-Tanets," Nathalie spoke, adjusting her glasses somewhat as she spoke. "While its true we may need to reschedule some things, it wouldn't have been in anyone's best interest to just leave you there," the assistant spoke. Her eyes gazing downward to the brace on the brunette's leg, she inquired further. "How is your leg doing? Has the pain gone away?"

"Almost. It just needs a little rest. And I've got medication to help with the pain." Samantha admitted, reaching for her backpack and rummaging through it until she pulled out a small, orange pill bottle. "I have painkillers to help when it gets too bad. I just need to take one and it should help my leg for the rest of the day as long as I rest."

"I don't really know much about tendinitis. Do you have to take all of those until it goes away or something?" Adrien asked, eyes curiously staring at the pill bottle in the brunette's hand.

"Adrien," Nathalie warned, eyeing the blonde across from her. "Remember your manners. It is rude to inquire about personal matters."

"R-Right. Sorry, I shouldn't have asked so casually." Adrien spoke softly, looking embarrassed by his slip up.

Watching the two interact, Samantha shook her head. "N-No, it's okay. You weren't being rude." Samantha reassured the blonde, showing a slightly nervous, albeit kind smile. "Some tendinitis can be cured with surgery and time, but mine is a bit severe. The pills are just pain killers; numbing the pain if it gets too bad for me."

"Oh," Adrien softly spoke, nodding his head in understanding. "I'm sorry that your leg hurts so much. Did you get hurt playing sports or something?"

"Adrien." Nathalie spoke up once more, putting a bit more strength in her voice. "Manners."

"Ugh, sorry. Again. I get too carried away when I'm curious." Adrien admitted, rubbing his neck awkwardly

"It's okay, Miss Nathalie. I'm used to people asking. No harm, no foul. Though...I kind of want to keep that kind of stuff to myself. It's a little sad to talk about." Samantha explained, turning her gaze away somewhat to the window next to her to stare out at the streets of Paris they were passing by.

"Yeah. That make sense. Sorry, again." Adrien said once more, doing his best to be sincere and help his newfound acquaintance understand he meant nothing by it.

Feeling a small seed of worry form, Samantha turned back to Adrien and smiled. "It's okay. But maybe we should change the subject to something else?" Her mind wandering to something simple and easy to talk about, a thought did pop into her head. "So, Adrien, you asked me before how I didn't know who you are. Are famous? Or do movies or something like that?"

Having the tables turn, Adrien smiled a little and moved a hand to rub his neck. "Not exactly, but you're close. My father is pretty famous with fashion. And I do work for him. So I guess I'm a fashion model."

Brown eyes widened in fascination. "Really? That sounds really interesting. I don't know a lot about fashion or how modeling works, but it seems like something pretty cool."

"A bit. But it does get a bit tiring with all the schedules and appointments." Adrien added with a shrug. "I wish I could get more time to myself, you know? Go to school and not have to worry about looking all fancy."

Samantha rose a brow at Adrien's answer. "You don't go to school?"

Hearing her confusion, Adrien looked hesitantly away. "Well-"

"We're here." Nathalie spoke up to the two teens, breaking them from their conversation as the scenery outside shifted to a large school building. The car slowly making its stop at the curb in front of the school, Nathalie looked over to Samantha and gave her a polite nod. "Do you need help getting to the building, Miss Fujisaki-Tanets?"

Feeling a bit awkward being placed on the spot, Samantha didn't say anything first. Staying quiet, Samantha's gaze shifted from Nathalie and then to Adrien. She wasn't sure why. She wasn't sure what she wanted to convey from just her staring. But it was all she could do besides answering.

"Hey, how about I just help to make sure she gets there?" Adrien asked, piping up and moving to get out of his side of the car and motioned Samantha to scoot towards him.

"O-Oh, thank you." Samantha spoke, somehow finding her voice as she moved closer to Adrien. Outstretching her hand to him, the blonde took her hand softly the same as he had before helping her off the sidewalk and moved to help her step out of the limousine.

"No problem. Looked like you wanted to get out of there." Adrien admitted, smiling to ease the brunette's worries.

"Did I really? I hoped I didn't look obvious," Samantha admitted, walking alongside Adrien as they began to make their way little by little to the school. "I don't know why I didn't say anything. I talked so much in the car, but when it came time to ask for help, my mind just froze up."

Maybe deep down she didn't want to be more of a bother to them both. They'd helped her so much. To ask for more might seem selfish. Like she couldn't do anything for herself.

"Don't worry. Happens to me sometimes during photo shoots. Everyone gets nervous when they're in the spotlight." Adrien joked, making the two teens chuckle a bit.

"I don't know if being asked a question counts the same as getting pictures taken for a fashion magazine, but tomato tomaato, right?" Samantha asked.

"Tomato towhato? What's that mean?" Adrien inquired, curious as to what Samantha meant.

"Oh, right. I forgot. Sorry, its a saying in the States. I just moved here from New York. To make it simple, it's like saying there's two different ways fo saying or seeing things, but they mean the same thing in the end. Like how some people call a tomato just a tomato, while others pronounce it a different way, but in the end its still a fruit."

Again Adrien's eyes shined with curiosity, only this time his eyebrows rose. "Wait, tomato's are fruits?"

Hearing such a sincerely confusing tone come from such a silly question, Samantha couldn't help but let out a laugh. Nearly losing her footing, Samantha shook her head as the two made it up the final step of the school and reached the entrance. "You know what? It doesn't matter. But it looks like this is where my stop is." Taking her hand away from Adrien, Samantha smiled a little. "Thank you again for helping me today. I don't know what I would have done if it wasn't for you and Miss Nathalie."

Feeling shy about the honest praise, Adrien sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "It was no problem. There was no way I could just leave you out on the sidewalk like that. Would have been a bad way to show off the good side of Paris, don't you think?"

"True." Turning her head away from her acquaintance towards the large school in front of her, suddenly something deep inside Samantha began to shift into perspective.

All this time she'd moved she was told she was going to be going to a new school. That besides moving, she'd be making a fresh new start at her school and meet new people. Interact with others on a different scale from back home.

All of a sudden she was starting to feel like a statue unable to move or breath.

She hadn't known how fast and shortly she was breathing until she felt the warmth of hand resting on her shoulder. Turning to see Adrien beside her, the blonde looked concerned at the brunette with him. "Nervous?"

"A bit," Samantha admitted. "It's been a long time since I had to worry about meeting new people at school. Even more since I'm in another country. I'm not sure if I'm ready to do this."

"Hey, you're gonna do great." Adrien said with encouragement, smiling to the shorter girl. "And look at it this way. All these people here are from Paris. You on the other hand? You're from New York. Everyone is gonna want to get to know you and know about where you lived before here. You'll make tons of friends." The blonde added with a confident nod.

"You really think so?" Samantha asked, not sure if she could really believe something so easily said.

"Know so. I may not have many a lot of friends myself, but you're nice and funny and I've only known you for ten minutes. I'm positive everyone is going to love you." Adding encouraging words to the brunette.

Unable to do anything else but smile at the thoughtful words, Samantha did notice one particular thing Adrien said. Shaking her head, Samantha reached out and grabbed Adrien's hands softly in her own. "Well, I may not be confident about a lot of things, but one thing is certain for sure. You're the first friend I've made here in Paris, Adrien. So thank you for that."

Feeling a bit shocked by the sudden admittance from the brunette, Adrien at first said nothing, all too focused on the fact that Samantha was holding his hands. A bit confused at first, Adrien's brain began to piece together all that the girl had said, making the blonde motion to stare back at Samantha. "Really? Your first friend?"

Now too realizing a bit how strange she was acting, Samantha looked to where her hands were and jumped, pulling them away and placing them back in her jacket pockets. How could she be so stupid? She probably just invaded Adrien's personal space!

 _Stupid, this isn't America. You can't just go and touch people!_

"S-Sorry! I didn't mean to invade your personal space. Or presume anything. We don't...have to be friends if you don't want to." Samantha said, although her tone spoke otherwise to that.

"No, no. It's alright. I didn't really mind. I'm was just kind of surprised," Adrien answered truthfully. "But don't worry. We're friends."

Smiling to one another, both teens jumped a bit at the sound of a car horn honking loudly in the distance. Turning their heads back, the faces of the driver and Nathalie stared at them from afar; looking as if their eyes conveyed them to move quicker.

"S-Sorry about them. They like to make sure I'm punctual to my lessons." Adrien apologized, scratching his head nervously.

"Your lessons? So you really don't go here." Samantha spoke, saddened by the idea. Just when she'd made a friend.

"Believe me, I want to, but my father prefers home schooling. I am enrolled here, but I've been having trouble convincing him to let me come. I'm hoping if I ask enough, I might change his mind." Adrien said sadly.

Listening to his plight, Samantha hummed in understanding. "Don't worry, I kind of have an overprotective mom. I know the feeling. But, if...or when you do end up coming here, if we're in the same class, I'll save you a seat."

Feeling a warmth rise up in his chest, Adrien smiled brightly and nodded. "Sure. Thanks, Sam."

The brunette chuckled. "Nobody's ever called me Sam before."

Just as he said that, another honk of the car made the two teens jump.

Sighing, Samantha smiled awkwardly. "I'll...see you around?"

Showing off the same awkward smile, Adrien turned to leave, but looked back to Samantha and nodded. "Yeah. Positive."

Nodding in agreement, Samantha turned away from Adrien as she slowly, but rudely made her first few steps into her new school, leaving her first friend in Paris behind to begin her journey to finding and potentially making even more.

* * *

As she disappeared from view, Adrien Agreste couldn't help but smile to himself as he made his way towards the stern looking Nathalie and his bodyguard. After all this time he'd bee trying to get to school, it took just one random day, one random encounter to make his first friend in a very long time.

It had to mean something, didn't it?

 _Maybe it meant father-_

"Ah!"

A low yell and the sound of a cane falling onto the ground made Adrien Agreste stop his train of thought. Confused and curious, he urned his head towards what he thought was the source and saw an older man in a Hawaiian shirt crumpled to the ground trying to reach for his cane.

Feeling like it was the right thing to do in any situation, Adrien rushed over to the old man and helped him up.

"Are you okay, sir?" Adrien asked he older man.

Dusting himself off after being helped up, the old man smiled to Adrien and nodded. "A bit dusty, but no injuries. Thank you, young man."

"It's my pleasure." Adrien responded.

"Adrien," The voice of Nathalie called. "It's time to go."

His jovial attitude quickly deflating, Adrien turned around and headed back to his family's car. "Alright."

Watching the scene play out before him, the old man hummed in satisfaction as Adrien was whisked away and he stood alone in front of the high school. Tapping his cane thoughtfully at what had transpired, the old man looked back towards the school and smiled.

"I think these two will do wonderfully if the time comes."

* * *

Yay, friends already! A lot better start compared to Marinette and Adrien's beginnings. As I originally began writing this chapter, I wanted to figure out just how the two would meet. I did not believe it would be the same in the show with it starting as some misunderstanding and ending with them becoming friends. Rather I knew if Samantha was in need of aid, Adrien is the type of guy to come to someone's aid and help them if they need him.

It's what makes him a good candidate as a hero and shows his kind side.

Plus now that both are friends already, Adrien may just have a little more of an easier time meeting the others at school when he comes along.

Or maybe Chloe might find a way to ruin that for Sam and Adrien too. Who knows?

And don't forget that little Akuma. Those two have a wild ride ahead of them. ;3


End file.
